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A review by bryjpg
Things You May Find Hidden in My Ear: Poems from Gaza by Mosab Abu Toha
challenging
emotional
fast-paced
5.0
so so powerful but also sad to see the parallels between aggressions in the past and the ongoing genocide today, especially with the poem The Wounds.
the ones that stood out to me the most are probably:
“Their ears hurt when they hear sirens, but we are made deaf by explosions.
Their muscles stiffen with fear on their way to the shelters,
while ours are pierced by boiling shrapnel.” - Us and Them
“Threads of sun
hang in the air.
Butterflies flit across them
like the fingers
of a young guitarist
plucking the strings.” - A Boy and his Telescope
“‘I am not afraid of death. I am ready but I am not waiting for it.’
He hates waiting.
He asks death if it could wait for some time until he finishes
writing his new poem.
He looks at himself in the mirror and puts
a fresh rose in his lapel for the coming long journey.” - To Mahmoud Darwish
I also loved the interview portion at the end, especially when he spoke about the way he approaches poetry and his experiences traveling to the US and essentially seeing Gaza through a new lens while there.
the ones that stood out to me the most are probably:
“Their ears hurt when they hear sirens, but we are made deaf by explosions.
Their muscles stiffen with fear on their way to the shelters,
while ours are pierced by boiling shrapnel.” - Us and Them
“Threads of sun
hang in the air.
Butterflies flit across them
like the fingers
of a young guitarist
plucking the strings.” - A Boy and his Telescope
“‘I am not afraid of death. I am ready but I am not waiting for it.’
He hates waiting.
He asks death if it could wait for some time until he finishes
writing his new poem.
He looks at himself in the mirror and puts
a fresh rose in his lapel for the coming long journey.” - To Mahmoud Darwish
I also loved the interview portion at the end, especially when he spoke about the way he approaches poetry and his experiences traveling to the US and essentially seeing Gaza through a new lens while there.