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the_eucologist's review
4.0
This was my first book of poetry and I really enjoyed it. Jericho Brown covers expansive terrain as a queer black author with poems touching on the loss of innocence ("Romans 12:1" and "Cain" ), the complexities of MSM and SGL relationships ("Host" and "Dear Dr. Frankenstein"), exploitation in safe spaces ("To Be Seen" and "1 Corinthians 13:11"), and the transiency of family ("N'em" and "Motherland"). In this collection "Cain" is probably my favorite not only because its cadence recalls spoken word, but because it positions black youth as innocent while offering the corrective that bearing witness to inhumanity is often a morally formative rather than corrosive experience. Little / Brothers tortured most / Of God's creatures, and small / Men watched them bleed. It always fascinates me how so few lines can contain such universal truths.
bluelilyblue's review
4.0
From my experience with contemporary anglophone poetry, the cadence and musicality of Jericho Brown's poetry is unmatched; not to mention his precise understanding of poetry as linguistic economy -- every word has weight and purpose.
brice_mo's review
2.0
This is likely a me issue based on how much people love Jericho Brown's work, but like The Tradition, I just didn't find much here. These are very competent and sturdy poems, but I just never felt like they had any unexpected turns or took any risks. My guess is that most people read this as the poet's confident voice, but for me, part of the appeal of poetry is its ambition with language—a willingness to test its limits.
mimichang's review
4.0
Enjoyed, but nothing near as ~astounding~ as his later work with duplexes in The Tradition, which I love!
achilleanshelves's review
4.0
Brown really is one of my favourite voices in poetry, this collection was great and captures so much emotion.