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A review by aishathebibliophile
Native Guard by Natasha Trethewey
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
In part inspired by the death of her mum and all black regiment of the civil war (The Louisiana Native Guards) composed mainly of former slaves who unironically guarded white Confederate war prisoners. It’s divided into three parts with 1 focused on the personal and loss of her mum. I liked this poem best, others felt more abstract
“AFTER YOUR DEATH
First, I emptied the closets of your clothes,
threw out the bowl of fruit, bruised
from your touch, left empty the jars
you bought for preserves. The next morning,
birds rustled the fruit trees, and later
when I twisted a ripe fig loose from its stem,
I found it half eaten, the other side
already rotting, or—like another I plucked
and split open—being taken from the inside:
a swarm of insects hollowing it. I'm too late,
again, another space emptied by loss.
Tomorrow, the bowl I have yet to fill.”
Parts 2 and three are much stronger pieces, the titular poem Native Guard and “Scenes from a documentary of Mississippi” are among notable standouts.
Short collection but worth the read
“AFTER YOUR DEATH
First, I emptied the closets of your clothes,
threw out the bowl of fruit, bruised
from your touch, left empty the jars
you bought for preserves. The next morning,
birds rustled the fruit trees, and later
when I twisted a ripe fig loose from its stem,
I found it half eaten, the other side
already rotting, or—like another I plucked
and split open—being taken from the inside:
a swarm of insects hollowing it. I'm too late,
again, another space emptied by loss.
Tomorrow, the bowl I have yet to fill.”
Parts 2 and three are much stronger pieces, the titular poem Native Guard and “Scenes from a documentary of Mississippi” are among notable standouts.
Short collection but worth the read