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dragongirl271's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Racism, and Alcoholism
30something_reads's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
While I really enjoyed how personal Alyan got within this collection, having read this after her most recent collection, it did not hold up as well in its entirety. The Moon That Turns You Back is a much stronger collection in my option.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Violence, Rape, Racism, Mental illness, Addiction, Islamophobia, and Sexual content
discarded_dust_jacket's review
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
I’m not someone who gravitates toward poetry. I often struggle with metaphor, and have trouble identifying the meaning behind things when it seemingly comes so easy to others.
At first, when I started reading this I was immediately frustrated and wanted to put it down saying, “see this is why I don’t read poetry,” because some of the pieces do read as very opaque and intentionally obfuscated, and my first impulse was to get hung up on understanding the thing. Making sense of it.
But I pushed on, and tried to focus more on simply enjoying the ride, and asking myself “How does this make me feel even if I can’t identify what it’s explicitly trying to say? What emotions is it evoking?”
These poems felt like… simmering rage. They felt like grief, like complicated nostalgia, like a syrupy sort of lust, like self-deprecation at times, quiet hopefulness at others. I took to highlighting simple phrases that I found particularly evocative. Phrases like:
“…went to the library after hours to bang on a door I knew was locked.“
“Sometimes I want to drive all the way to Connecticut and sneak into someone else’s empty pool, sit at the very bottom like a teacup.”
At first, when I started reading this I was immediately frustrated and wanted to put it down saying, “see this is why I don’t read poetry,” because some of the pieces do read as very opaque and intentionally obfuscated, and my first impulse was to get hung up on understanding the thing. Making sense of it.
But I pushed on, and tried to focus more on simply enjoying the ride, and asking myself “How does this make me feel even if I can’t identify what it’s explicitly trying to say? What emotions is it evoking?”
These poems felt like… simmering rage. They felt like grief, like complicated nostalgia, like a syrupy sort of lust, like self-deprecation at times, quiet hopefulness at others. I took to highlighting simple phrases that I found particularly evocative. Phrases like:
“…went to the library after hours to bang on a door I knew was locked.“
“Sometimes I want to drive all the way to Connecticut and sneak into someone else’s empty pool, sit at the very bottom like a teacup.”
“You made me up, all heels and mascara. You love the instrument you refuse to play.”
“…tried to meditate but kept humming that song instead, and I eventually gave up and watched the birds, hundreds of them in formation, a dark V that swooped and pirouetted against the rose-pink dusk, and for a moment I finally shut up, prayed only that something so beautiful would know that it was.”
“I’m keeping my wedding dress. It’s the sick girl in the coat closet.”
“…this world brightens with or without us. Recognizing the miracle becomes the miracle.”
So all in all, this took some effort, before I purposefully shifted the way I approached it, but I’m glad that I did. I’m sure reading poetry is a muscle one has to exercise, and I’m just a bit out of shape, but I want to make it a point to read more poetry this year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Alcoholism, Addiction, Eating disorder, Infidelity, and Miscarriage
courtneyfalling's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
I brought this book to Brooklyn with me during a weekend trip and wow am I glad I did! Reading this in NYC was extra surreal! These poems are incredible and Hala Alyan is wildly underrated. Almost all the poems hit hard, and the way Hala Alyan twists different scenes and images is so masterful. I will be rereading this!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism
Moderate: Rape, Domestic abuse, and Sexual assault
Minor: Drug use
kellyd's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
An emotional and beautiful look at identity, war, heritage, and pain.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Grief, and Rape
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