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peppergp 's review for:
Satan Says
by Sharon Olds
challenging
dark
funny
fast-paced
I picked this up because I was familiar with a few of Olds’ more recent poems, and while it’s not as polished as her later work, this is an unbelievable first collection. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys confessional poetry.
It’s difficult to describe what it feels like to read this. A lot of the pleasure of reading it is in the shock and mild disgust I felt. I’ve never read a collection that has been so utterly evocative in this way. There were a few metaphors that I found distasteful to the point of losing their effectiveness (particularly the references to the Holocaust that Olds makes from an American Protestant perspective), but I mostly enjoyed my own reactions to the work. It’s extremely physical - sexual and violent and affectionate all at once. There were several poems that gripped me so strongly that I couldn’t process them fully until I’d read them three or four times in quick succession. Some of my favorites were also the most uncomfortable.
As strong as it is today, I can only imagine how much more shocking this would have been in the context of its original publication in 1980. This sort of bloody portrait of womanhood has probably lost some effectiveness over time as perspectives on gender have changed and second-wave artistic trends read as less revolutionary. Nonetheless, it’s stunning and provocative. I will definitely be reading other collections by Olds.
It’s difficult to describe what it feels like to read this. A lot of the pleasure of reading it is in the shock and mild disgust I felt. I’ve never read a collection that has been so utterly evocative in this way. There were a few metaphors that I found distasteful to the point of losing their effectiveness (particularly the references to the Holocaust that Olds makes from an American Protestant perspective), but I mostly enjoyed my own reactions to the work. It’s extremely physical - sexual and violent and affectionate all at once. There were several poems that gripped me so strongly that I couldn’t process them fully until I’d read them three or four times in quick succession. Some of my favorites were also the most uncomfortable.
As strong as it is today, I can only imagine how much more shocking this would have been in the context of its original publication in 1980. This sort of bloody portrait of womanhood has probably lost some effectiveness over time as perspectives on gender have changed and second-wave artistic trends read as less revolutionary. Nonetheless, it’s stunning and provocative. I will definitely be reading other collections by Olds.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Blood, Antisemitism, Pregnancy
Moderate: Child abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Car accident, Death of parent
Minor: Excrement, Vomit, Alcohol