Reviews

Oculus by Sally Wen Mao, Sally Wen Mao

melissablaise's review

4.0

Highly Recommend

Dystopian, dark, with a pivotal commentary on race, femininity, ageing and depression, hauntingly lyrical.

A must read collection of modern feminist poetry

jaclyn_sixminutesforme's review

5.0

“I wrote this book for women of color. Without you, the world isn’t possible. Because of you, I keep going. I have learned this the hard way: you matter, and don’t let anyone or anything convince you otherwise.”
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I wanted to share this quote from the acknowledgments because it serves a reminder of so many of the explorations within this collection that representation matters.
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This is an incredibly moving and present collection, and I’d encourage you to read the author’s notes at the end of the collection to get some insight into the specific real stories that she is sharing with the poems. For example, the title piece #Oculus in the first section is based on the 19yr old girl in Shanghai who uploaded her own suicide onto Instagram in 2014.
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I was particularly struck by the Anna May Wong poems that consume a large portion of the collection, and their exploration of representation (or more accurately, MISrepresentation) and “yellowface” in Hollywood and the film industry.
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Similarly, the Diary of Afong Moy looks at the first Chinese woman to travel to the US, who at 19 was exhibited as a curiosity as part of a marketing exercise to sell more Asian products to middle class white America.
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The poems are incredibly moving and place current discussions about identity and representation within a historic context. I look forward to reading more from this author and her brilliant way with words! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟.
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#diversespines #oculus #sallywenmao @graywolfpress #jaclynbookreview #poetryreview