Reviews

Vexations by Annelyse Gelman

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kdawn999's review

4.0

3.5 stars. This is a unique, book-length poem modeled after an unsettling piece of classical music of the same title. The classical piece is just one sheet of music, but the composer’s instructions say it should be played 840 times over. The poem plays on this idea of repetition and variation. It’s a little tough to get into and reads much like the cryptic curiosities of the podcast Welcome to Night Vale. But after about 12 pages the poem teaches you how to read it and provides a few loose narrative threads of a mother and daughter character. The start is before the daughter’s birth, then there is a sequence of childhood illness and hospital procedures. Then the final sequence finds the mother and daughter in a curious cult-like community. One could even read it as a post-apocalyptic community given the ecological menace built up in imagery. Rather than feeling emotionally moved, I feel energized in putting a puzzle together or pondering the different narrative interpretations and themes. This was an enjoyable book to book-club, and I like it better after discussion.