BOOK: I Undressed To Climb A Tree (Preview)

“I undressed to climb a tree; my naked thighs embraced the smooth and humid bark; my sandals climbed upon the branches. High up, but still beneath the leaves and shaded from the heat, I straddled a wide-spread fork and swung my feet into the void. It had rained. Drops of water fell and flowed upon my skin. My hands were soiled with the moss and my heels were reddened by the crushed blossoms. I felt the lovely tree living when the wind passed through it; so I locked my legs tighter, and crushed my open lips to the hairy nape of a bough.” 

In ‘I Undressed to Climb a Tree’, Emery juxtaposes the natural rhythms of life with the routinisation of urban environments. Her portrayal of listless young women evokes a sense of transition, reminiscent of the way Sofia Coppola captures moments of existential uncertainty in her movie “Lost in Translation”, which feature complex portraits of personages struggling for clarity and resolution. – Stefan Dotter, Editor in Chief Whitelies Magazine