A Wake for Josephine unfolds with all the suspense of a mystery novel, the drama of a detective film. Poem by poem, character by character, the reader pieces together clues to a murder: when the victim went missing, who she left behind, what she left behind ... This book's parts all are poems, but the whole is a story that answers Josephine's own question, "Is it too late to die of old age?" - H. L. Hix, author of Shadow of Houses and As Much As, If Not More

What most impressed me about A Wake for Josephine is how Robbins uses dialog exchanges at the college where Josephine was an adjunct to show how little she was valued as "just an adjunct," the dehumanization inherent in defining someone by her role. However, "Adjuncts" is more than just entertaining snark about the nature of college English departments. This section raises the questions that are at the heart of the book. Who are we? To ourselves, to each other, to our communities? Do our lives matter? Have we left our mark on the world? Will anyone notice our absence?"

• Elizabeth Gauffreau, author of Telling Sonny