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jayisreading's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.0
Hmm, I don’t think this collection hit me as hard as his previous one, Night Sky with Exit Wounds, but maybe it’s because Time Is a Mother was different in tone and approach. It felt as though there was a kind of shift that occurred, where Night Sky with Exit Wounds focused a bit more on the grief and trauma he inherited, while Time Is a Mother focused more inwardly and related to his own grief and memory. Furthermore, this collection really highlights the significance of losing his mother, which is a new and crucial theme to consider. These poems felt a bit more experimental, almost as though Vuong was trying to figure out what other affective approaches existed.
The collection was a little polarizing for me. The poems I didn’t care for, I really didn’t care for, but the poems that really struck me were absolutely provocative and/or breathtaking. My two favorites were “Amazon History of a Former Nail Salon Worker” and “Künstlerroman,” and I felt that the latter especially demonstrated Vuong’s poetic talent. It had stunning imagery and was packed with so much emotion. It was easily the best poem from this collection that I would say is the must-read.
Some favorites: “Beautiful Short Loser,” “Rise & Shine,” “The Last Prom Queen in Antarctica,” “Dear T,” “Not Even,” “Amazon History of a Former Nail Salon Worker,” “Künstlerroman,” and “Almost Human”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Cancer
Minor: Racism, War, and Suicide
ashleycmms's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, War, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Death
Moderate: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Cancer
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