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gerlinen's review
funny
reflective
A metaphor is a sleek cast
to keep us away from the source.
the anthology was unfortunately, at times, jarringly repetitive — the amount of times that the image of a rainy/sunny summer's day was conjoured up as the opening line was honestly a joke, to the point I'm geniunely confused how the editors didn't rectify this. nonetheless, Berry offered someone piercing, salient points about the craftmanship behind writing and poetry; one of my favourite lines being 'writing was a mist rising off my life, that's all / dependent on atmospheric conditions for its/ existence'.
while i'm not the biggest fan of prose poetry, i admire Berry for pushing the boundaries between the two mediums.
Fav poems: Therapy; Paris; Bad Stone
seventhswan's review
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
I enjoyed this collection! It was different than I expected - I’d only read Bad New Government by Berry before, and although some of these poems had political aspects to them too, they felt a lot less explicitly about any one topic. For me, they brought to mind the summer between leaving school and moving away from home, particularly the first section, while the second section had a more surreal feeling reminiscent of a dream journal. I didn’t like the third section as much as the others - some of the figurative language was a little tired and the poems failed to make an impact on me personally - but I’d definitely like to revisit this book.
casparb's review
I'm pretty clear that I'm a fan of Dear Boy, EB's debut, though Stranger, Baby was a little less interesting to me? Anyway expectations all over the shop for this one and I absolutely love it. I think her best work. So sophisticated, but Berry and luminous altogether.
I'm terribly sick of the way intertexts are effectively used as crutches for a lot of contemporary poets and this collection is absolutely swarming with them I just think it's a rare case of them Actually working. Proust, Fisher, and Chris Marker, my love! The silence of poets on the remarkable, miraculous Marker is terribly upsetting to me & I'm glad Berry's holding the fort here it's the perfect ray of complexity for her. perhaps that's intimidating too since I want more Marker in my life
I'm terribly sick of the way intertexts are effectively used as crutches for a lot of contemporary poets and this collection is absolutely swarming with them I just think it's a rare case of them Actually working. Proust, Fisher, and Chris Marker, my love! The silence of poets on the remarkable, miraculous Marker is terribly upsetting to me & I'm glad Berry's holding the fort here it's the perfect ray of complexity for her. perhaps that's intimidating too since I want more Marker in my life
caitlins_world's review against another edition
5.0
‘Why is it that the things that happen to us seem to have already happened’
julziez's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
auroragroneng's review
5.0
"Fish Tank
Once I watched a woman in a fish tank shitting directly into a tortoise's mouth. It was meant to be some kind of spectacle. She was invited to do it and was very happy to, and the tortoise was happy to eat."
Once I watched a woman in a fish tank shitting directly into a tortoise's mouth. It was meant to be some kind of spectacle. She was invited to do it and was very happy to, and the tortoise was happy to eat."