Prof. Brenda Cárdenas’s book Trace (Red Hen Press, 2023) won the Society of Midland Authors 2023 Poetry Book Award honoring the Society’s choices for the best books by Midwest authors published in 2023. Trace is also a finalist for Foreword Review‘s Indie Poetry Prize for books that present work that uses language for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or instead of, its apparent communication value.