I Know About a Thousand Things

Ann Alejandro, who lived all her life on a ranch in Uvalde, Texas, was a prolific writer with breathtaking natural talent. Though she lived for more than thirty years with chronic pain caused by fibromyalgia and other, mostly undiagnosed, illnesses, she wrote thousands of pages of poems, essays, and other creative works, the vast majority of it unpublished until now. Alejandro was also known for her lengthy letters, many written to her mother, who lived in the same town. Here in I Know About a Thousand Things, editors Naomi Shihab Nye and Marion Winik have selected the very best of Alejandro’s writing—vignettes, anecdotes, rants, and more. In fact, the opening poem in this collection, “I Know a Thinger Two,” was assembled by Nye, using lines from the many letters and emails she had received from Alejandro over the years. This collection, with commentary by Winik and Nye, is drawn from Alejandro’s vast creative output. It brings a measure of recognition to a woman who, though she labored in what might be seen as faithful obscurity, left behind a body of essays, letters, and poetry deserving of the most serious contemplation and appreciation. I Know About a Thousand Things: The Writings of Ann Alejandro of Uvalde, Texas will delight and enrich readers for years to come.