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riyal_reader 's review for:
If They Come for Us: Poems
by Fatimah Asghar
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
My favorite poems were Kal, White Lie, Land Where My Father Died, and Other Body. I also thought the poems entitled Partition were incredible. Asghar's exploration of orphanhood, found family, grief, & US imperialism were the strongest parts of this collection.
Some of the other themes, however, I found to be a bit trite—anti-South Asian discrimination (like "Microaggression Bingo"), immigrant identity, Muslim American experiences post-9/11—though that's likely my own fault for reading many other texts that explore those themes.
My main gripe with the collection is that the poems are not very poetic. Asghar doesn't manipulate language with great creativity (with the exception of Kal & maybe a few others) or use much figurative language beyond imagery and the occassional metaphor. A lot of the poetry felt very literal & although that may have been intentional (drawing on Fanon, maybe?), it left me wanting.
Some of the other themes, however, I found to be a bit trite—anti-South Asian discrimination (like "Microaggression Bingo"), immigrant identity, Muslim American experiences post-9/11—though that's likely my own fault for reading many other texts that explore those themes.
My main gripe with the collection is that the poems are not very poetic. Asghar doesn't manipulate language with great creativity (with the exception of Kal & maybe a few others) or use much figurative language beyond imagery and the occassional metaphor. A lot of the poetry felt very literal & although that may have been intentional (drawing on Fanon, maybe?), it left me wanting.