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chloekg's review against another edition
5.0
This book changed the way I saw Philadelphia. Strange that so much courage and boldness can be so subtle until called out by poets' eyes. It's simple, strong, coherent, you can almost hear breaths between the words. True poetry from a true poet.
angelreadsthings's review against another edition
3.0
3 1/2 Stars. This is a poem rooted in Black traditions of epic, ancestral story-telling. This is a poem of loss and disconnect and healing and hope. This is a poem full of living and of dying. This is a poem I look forward to re-reading again and again.
hsienhsien27's review against another edition
5.0
Borrowed from the Library
Does Your House Have Lions? is a small collection of micro poetry and haiku. The collection is centered on the theme if family and loss. The little snippets are built as minimal as possible. Sonia Sanchez is known for writing in traditional Japanese poetry forms. I don’t really have much to say about this collection other than the fact that it’s about the self-discovery and loss of an African American family. A father who isn’t always present, a son discovering that he’s gay and exploring that in the AIDS epidemic, and a sister and mother who are caught in between all of the heaviest conflicts of that time, the racism and the fluctuating changes of a generation. And then there’s death and the loss, at the end there’s this really poignant scene where the son connects with his ancestors after death. So there’s a sort magical realist influence going on here and I honestly wished it was a little longer.
Rating: 5/5
Originally posted on Notes on the Shore
Does Your House Have Lions? is a small collection of micro poetry and haiku. The collection is centered on the theme if family and loss. The little snippets are built as minimal as possible. Sonia Sanchez is known for writing in traditional Japanese poetry forms. I don’t really have much to say about this collection other than the fact that it’s about the self-discovery and loss of an African American family. A father who isn’t always present, a son discovering that he’s gay and exploring that in the AIDS epidemic, and a sister and mother who are caught in between all of the heaviest conflicts of that time, the racism and the fluctuating changes of a generation. And then there’s death and the loss, at the end there’s this really poignant scene where the son connects with his ancestors after death. So there’s a sort magical realist influence going on here and I honestly wished it was a little longer.
Rating: 5/5
Originally posted on Notes on the Shore
tisawizard's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
yeller's review against another edition
4.0
This epic poem is absolutely wonderful. Even with the difficult, abstract language, the emotion and tone are so obvious. It is heartbreaking, particularly the last section. I need to read more Sonia Sanchez. Not only does it discuss very beautifully the intersection between being African American and being gay, it also deals with AIDS, which is such a touchy subject. It captures the familial inner conflict when these issues arise, and it captures them through poetry, which in my opinion, is the truest way to capture humanity.
The book was primarily through her brother's perspective, as it was about her brother. I think the language could have been a bit more straightforward, and it would have had a greater emotional impact. However, I am uncomfortable critiquing the style of poetry, because preferences are so relative. This is simply how I feel. I would have been much more touched by the poetry if the experiences of everyone involved had been expressed in a more tangible manner.
The book was primarily through her brother's perspective, as it was about her brother. I think the language could have been a bit more straightforward, and it would have had a greater emotional impact. However, I am uncomfortable critiquing the style of poetry, because preferences are so relative. This is simply how I feel. I would have been much more touched by the poetry if the experiences of everyone involved had been expressed in a more tangible manner.
djinnofthedamned's review against another edition
5.0
I spent the morning reading this in the bath tub while listening to Hex Partner's "Darling, Safe Passage to You". I walked away from it thinking that I want to see this poem performed as if it was a choreopoem, because it has that beautiful potential about it, to come alive on stage and really take on the imagination of the actors as they try to speak to its themes of familial estrangement, death, and reconciliation. I wonder whether she intended to write this to be performed, or embodied on stage in any sort of way. At any rate, while its a short, epic read (depending on your reading speed), this is a book to meditate on, take with you, carry inside of you, especially in these times.
lamp_luvrrr's review against another edition
4.0
"what you need is a cleansing of the body"
loved the cultural aspects of the poems.
sonia sanchez does it again, creating a masterpiece full of emotion.
loved the cultural aspects of the poems.
sonia sanchez does it again, creating a masterpiece full of emotion.
apollonium's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0