Scan barcode
zarvindale's review against another edition
4.0
I got to read this poetry collection when the author sent me a free copy of it years ago, after he read my tweet in which I was desperately seeking it. Rodrigo Dela Peña Jr.’s work is one I admire because it is easy to read while remaining bound to the conventions of lyric poetry. In this collection, sound becomes an outlet of grief over tragedy, over death. This sound isn’t merely a warble; it’s an aria, loud and shrill for the world to hear. The notes ascend and swell so as to summon God, who’s believed to be capable of explaining why every unfortunate thing must happen. Sorrow is clear here, just as it is dramatic in nature.
More...