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4.43 AVERAGE
4.43 AVERAGE
Billy-Ray’s poetry, cerebral and academic at times and conversationally confessional at others, is always an emotional gut punch. One that breaks down the horrors of Canadian colonialism yet also builds up hope for the future, in the form of an empowered, Ndn utopia.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Like in his last book, Belcourt's poems tell a story of the indigenous body, the pain and history it carries, and describes ways of living and loving from within such a body, this new book of poems opens up to a larger lens.
It turns it's attention more directly to the history of the indigenous oppression and the systems within Canada that caused it. He also talks about the difficulty in living in and loving a world that you simultaneously hate and is trying to kill you.
His verse can be both very pop and very academic. He references critical theorists, physiologists, musicians, and poets.
Personally, it made me laugh out loud, it broke my heart. There were moments I was rightly left out of as a white settler, but there were also moments I felt I could connect to either as a gay person or just as a human.
It turns it's attention more directly to the history of the indigenous oppression and the systems within Canada that caused it. He also talks about the difficulty in living in and loving a world that you simultaneously hate and is trying to kill you.
His verse can be both very pop and very academic. He references critical theorists, physiologists, musicians, and poets.
Personally, it made me laugh out loud, it broke my heart. There were moments I was rightly left out of as a white settler, but there were also moments I felt I could connect to either as a gay person or just as a human.
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
4.5/5
I'm constantly fascinated by Billy-Ray Belcourt's work. His work is genuinely so unique and I never know what to expect when I sit down to read him; his poetry defines genre conventions. These poems will move, provoke, and infuriate all at once. This book specifically has some photography and art pieces, so I'd recommend reading a print copy if you can to see it as it was intended to be presented.
I'm constantly fascinated by Billy-Ray Belcourt's work. His work is genuinely so unique and I never know what to expect when I sit down to read him; his poetry defines genre conventions. These poems will move, provoke, and infuriate all at once. This book specifically has some photography and art pieces, so I'd recommend reading a print copy if you can to see it as it was intended to be presented.
A must-read for any poetry lover as Billy-Ray examines what it means to be Indigenous and queer and searching for love in a place still bleeding from past/present violence. If I had to pick a favorite, "A Romance of the Present."
reflective
medium-paced