A review by sourpersimmon
What Noise Against the Cane, Volume 115 by Desiree C. Bailey

5.0

Beautiful, devastating, deep and rich. I needed to read each stanza multiple times to absorb as much as possible and to turn each word, image, in my mind. Descriptions of womanhood and grasping at our mothers' and grandmothers' culture when being part of a diaspora really connected with me. The tragedy and violence of enslavement and anti-Black racism and murder, and the continued vein of perseverance, rebellion, and defiance are strong emotions throughout each poem. I highly recommend this volume.