He Dances in His Wheelchair
by Charles Becker
15 Poems ~ 29 pages
Price: $15.99
Publisher: Finishing Line Press
ISBN: To be affixed later
This title will be released on March 27, 2026
RESERVE YOUR COPY TODAY
To Order: Finishinglinepress.com
ABOUT THE BOOK:
He Dances in His Wheelchair, is a concentrically designed and embracingly choreographed chapbook of love poems about a life partner. It offers everyone a guide for the journey of living with and loving someone who is differently abled, proudly Black, and wildly health challenged. Each word in this collection of poems means to be accessible, personal, and inclusive.
ADVANCE PRAISE:
The poems in Charles Becker’s He Dances in His Wheelchair each unfold with their own natural rhythm, calling us back to our own embodied joy and celebration of every new moment, every new day. These poems help us to “learn/once again/how love feels” between men who have chosen to share their lives and dreams with each other. By turns playful and compassionate, He Dances in His Wheelchair renews my sense of hope for a transformative love that “like muscled hands/pushing through a crowd/touches my shoulder/surprises me always.”
–James Crews, author of Turning Toward Grief and Breathing Room
In this collection of poems written by Charlie Becker, This First introduces us to his lover, Aubry, the differently abled brilliant man that this chapbook is dedicated to. He takes us on beautiful journey of their life together with the words, “I listen to his stories fluent and true as they fly from his lips into the open evening envelope.” In, The Portrait and The Artist along with The Artist and The Model, it feels like Becker is making love to Aubry as he draws him. I loved the line, “wrists made powerful by the grip of his crutches.” These poems will tug at your emotional gut.
–Gordon Blitz, Author of the novel The Hermaphrodites and the play A Homeless Thanksgiving.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Charlie Becker is a poet, visual artist, and enthusiastic gardener who writes with and guest-lectures for poetry students in the Community Literature Initiative (CLI) of Los Angeles. His autobiographical poems are typically about art, nature, and friendships. Some of Charlie’s poems have been published in the following journals: The Comstock Review, Passager Journal, The Dandelion Review, and Quiet Diamonds (Orchard Street Press). His most recent chapbook, Dodging Bullies, was published by Finishing Line Press in 2023. He lives in Laguna Woods, California, with his partner, Aubry.
FROM THE BOOK:
He Wants to Be
by Charles Becker
like everyone else, like Huey Newton’s brother
he preaches into the mirror, proud of kinfolk
ancestors, teachers from the motherland, each heart
he carries from the diaspora those who’ve been
homeless for so long he wants to lead them, be them
showcase their colors, bring their histories alive
like bright flowers along a powerful long stem
celebrating those who dared to share spoken truths
watch him sexy swoon to the rhythms of Jill Scott
book his library shelves with Walter Mosley reads
dance poised in his wheelchair not scorned in the spotlight
shined on Alvin Ailey’s passion and legacy
yes, watch him wear those people well, become them all
abled and free as panthers learning their blackness
in the brightness of day from and for each other.
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