Big Man

Chestnut Review Chapbooks

By: Katie Kemple

Narrated by: Katie Kemple

In Big Man Katie Kemple creates a portrait of fatherhood in the shadow of loss: the untimely death of partners, unresolved trauma as a veteran, and chronic pain. Kemple shows a father moving forward despite it all with the generosity and grace to love and be loved. He's the teacher who gives hitchhiking students a lift to the mall, the dad who chaperones Girl Scout fieldtrips, the husband who clings to the last flame of his wife's life. A man who stayed open to "rocks, sea glass, / shells and pinecones. Small things we / might have passed into his big hands."

©2025 Katie Kemple (P)2025 Katie Kemple

Exquisite visuals

Kemple’s ability to transport the listener/reader through her spare and visually exacting words is unmatched. These poems about her father are a beautiful portrait, supercharged with emotion, that left me in tears. I am in awe.

Touching tribute to a father

Well-crafted, relatable, and entertaining poems read with feeling by the author. I look forward to listening again!