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lsparrow's review
4.0
the flow of the words, the beat and timing and how she captures experience are what i love about this poet
rquickly's review
4.0
What a lovely poetry collection. An incredibly dense one at that, but I absolutely adored the opening poem and the sense of thematic work it does for the rest of the book. A collection that begs the question of what does loss truly look like? It's a tough question, it really is. But in all of my experiences, it is a loss that intrinsically comes with the feelings we desire most: joy, love, and passion. Every moment of our days is filled with this sense of what we would like to have something we will inevitably lose. Creating a book that soothes rather than harms, despite its dark subject matter is truly a triumph. I can imagine myself reaching for it again and again.
Favorite poems: The Rule of Opulence, Dementia Is One Way to Say Fatal Brain Failure, In the Event of the Apocalypse, Be Prepared to Die
Favorite poems: The Rule of Opulence, Dementia Is One Way to Say Fatal Brain Failure, In the Event of the Apocalypse, Be Prepared to Die
nuhafariha's review
4.0
Thank you to Tin House and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available Aug 18 2020
From the talented Khadijah Queen comes another sharply observed, generous and deeply heartfelt inventory of the soul. Ranging from love poems to mental health to politics of NJ Transit, Queen has a way of transforming the ordinary into light and dark, creating quiet spaces of reflection in an often too loud world. I can't do her work any justice other than to say that it acts as an anodyne, or painkiller, for the soul.
Available Aug 18 2020
From the talented Khadijah Queen comes another sharply observed, generous and deeply heartfelt inventory of the soul. Ranging from love poems to mental health to politics of NJ Transit, Queen has a way of transforming the ordinary into light and dark, creating quiet spaces of reflection in an often too loud world. I can't do her work any justice other than to say that it acts as an anodyne, or painkiller, for the soul.
hrbumga's review
5.0
This was the first of Khadijah Queen's collections I'd read, who I've wanted to read for a while. It definitely did not disappoint! Highly poignant with imagery that just draws you in, this collection was wonderful. I look forward to reading more of Queen's works in the future.
aicher's review
5.0
This was the first of Khadijah Queen's collections I'd read, who I've wanted to read for a while. It definitely did not disappoint! Highly poignant with imagery that just draws you in, this collection was wonderful. I look forward to reading more of Queen's works in the future.
jessicaseptember's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
marginaliant's review
2.0
Favorite poems: In the event of an apocalypse be ready to die, Eclogue for personae
seebrandyread's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Anodyne–something that heals or soothes pain, a medicine. Perhaps, if taken too far, something that dilutes or deadens. What pains the narrators of Khadijah Queen’s poetry is sometimes clear, sometimes not. Fear/threat of apocalypse. A depressed child. Existential angst. Fibromyalgia. It’s also both clear and unclear what eases this pain. Family. Language. Reading or writing these poems. Queen seems most interested in the words themselves, the images they evoke, their sounds and connotations, less concerned with literal representation than encouraging the reader to have their own experience and interpretation of her words. Her poems are also elusive because of her use and rejection of punctuation and her awareness of poetry as a visual format. No two poems look alike even when the difference is as subtle as line spacing. She plays with forms as a way to subvert meaning and to call on her poetic influences including three grid poems in the style of Mark McMorris that place lines and space in differently-shaped grids to create poems with a choose-your-own-adventure feel. This collection is ultimately about life in its physical and spiritual forms. It’s about the ways we keep our bodies alive by caring for them directly or by finding the will to keep them alive. They’re also about the living, breathing nature of language and how it can be a burden or boon to our survival.