Reviews

Blood Dazzler by Patricia Smith

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jam_ie3's review

5.0

This hurt!!! Easily one of the best poetry collections I’ve ever read. The bold use of persona in these poems gave the book so much character, and brought the poems to life.

Some of my favorite poems in the bunch:
- Won’t Be but a Minute
- What to Tweak
- Ms. Thang Sloshes in the Direction of Home
- 34

Wow!! I love you Patricia Smith!!

sarinarm's review

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5.0

I can't believe I let this book sit on my shelf for two years.

I don't remember much about Katrina, since I was young when it happened and far north of the disaster, but this book of poems made me realize how real and terrible the storm was. It circulates from many different perspectives and times, telling the story of the storm and how it affected so many people.

Would read again, over and over and over again. It was a brilliant work by Patricia Smith.

mmchirdo33's review

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challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

5.0

2000s's review

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3.5

Beautiful concept of a tribute to those who experienced Hurricane Katrina. Flowed well as a collection and there were some really good poems too. I didn’t care for it for many of them but that’s just me.

uusername1's review

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Got to poem "34" and suddenly the whole collection clicked and I reread it from the beginning.

huncamuncamouse's review

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3.0

I found much to admire, especially in terms of form in this collection. However, I was hoping the collection would teach me or articulate something new about Katrina and its aftermath. I grew up in New Orleans and the storm displaced my relatives; maybe I know more than the average reader would. That said, even within the collection, I saw repetition when I longed to consider the storm in a way I hadn’t yet.