The Perch’s Mouth
wildering rat
piled on a
white elephant
stripped to the waist
half her head
black
flies crawling
on and off
again sniff
airplane glue
bend and peck
creak and settle
think and run
the footsteps
the hall
is closer
a monster waits
a half mile
away
I hope she’ll be
the dangling
he opens
eyes
turns on
the
taste
Text from King, Stephen. Salem’s Lot. New York: Random House, 1975. Print. pages: 46-64.
Jennifer MacBain-Stephens lives in the DC area and is the author of three full length poetry collections: “Your Best Asset is a White Lace Dress,” (Yellow Chair Press, 2016) “The Messenger is Already Dead,” (Stalking Horse Press, March 2017,) and “We’re Going to Need a Higher Fence,” tied for first place in the 2017 Lit Fest Book Competition. Her work has been nominated for Best of the Net and the Pushcart Prize. She is also the author of nine chapbooks. Her chapbook “She Came Out From Under the Bed, (Poems Inspired by the Films of Guillermo del Toro)” recently came out from Dancing Girl Press. Recent work can be seen at or is forthcoming from Prelude, Kestrel, Yalobusha Review, decomp, and Inter/rupture. Visit: http://
