brandysith's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed the concept of writing poems about paintings, but it would have been much better if the paintings were actually included in the book.
nick_jenkins's review against another edition
3.0
Unlike Native Guard, the poems about Trethewey's father are by far superior to her historical reflections. Most of these historical poems are close readings of seventeenth or eighteenth century paintings, which gives these poems a static, rather flat quality, the very opposite of her superbly dynamic poems in Native Guard. "Enlightenment" is a standout, as is "Bird in the House." "Torna Atras" is much better than the other historicals.
miranda_is_currently_reading's review against another edition
5.0
After today, I NEEDED this book. It was perfect, and exactly what I needed to allow myself to step back, think about my day, and realize that because of people like Natasha Trethewey and anyone who can relate or feel something when they read one of her poems, there's always a bright side, and there IS hope.
ktkeps's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25
alisarae's review against another edition
The poet, Natasha Trethewey, is the black daughter of a white father. The poems in Thrall are personal reflections on her family dynamics and poetic ruminations on the history of mixed parentage in the Americas. Many poems are about paintings where people of different races are interacting in intimate spaces, particularly the Casta paintings. So read with Google close by. I always enjoy poems about visual art. Art reflecting art reflecting life.
“The wages of empire is myopia”
“The wages of empire is myopia”
owlette's review against another edition
5.0
I highly recommend reading this poetry collection with the interview of the poet published on World Literature Today. I didn't know that Natasha Trethewey’s father was also a poet, nor had I read her previous works; it would have been harder to notice the subtexts if I hadn’t read the article. But even without reading the article first, one can readily recognize common phrases and motifs scattered throughout thrall that give the collection a certain sense of coherence dedicated to her (white) father. I’m eager to read other published works of Trethewey.
My favorites:
- "Elegy" (the first poem)
- "Illumination" (the last poem)
- "Knowledge"
- "Enlightenment"
- "Fouled"
- "Rotation"
- "Thrall"
- "The Americans"
My favorites:
- "Elegy" (the first poem)
- "Illumination" (the last poem)
- "Knowledge"
- "Enlightenment"
- "Fouled"
- "Rotation"
- "Thrall"
- "The Americans"