scrow1022's review against another edition
5.0
Lovely, tender, aching. "Finding the source of someone's pain turned into someone else's wealth" (Oliver de la Paz).
earldizon's review against another edition
4.0
For my Filipino Reads challenge and since April is National Poetry Month, I wanted to spotlight The Galleons by Filipino poet Rick Barot. Even if poetry is not your cup of tea, I think you'll get something out of this collection. Some are snapshots of everyday life. Some are unexpected.
rgaiovnik's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you Milkweed Books for sending me a copy of The Galleons- Poems by Rick Barot. Mr. Barots poems were perfect snippets into a lifetime of urban living from an immigrant perspective. As he weaves beautiful imagery around his poignant statements, he dives head on into every emotion without falter. A really stunning collection.
maddyb001's review against another edition
3.0
This book melded contemporary politics with historical and ongoing colonialism in a beautiful way.
lauren_endnotes's review against another edition
My 2nd collection by Barot. Really appreciated CHORD a few years ago so glad to read his new collection and see it's buzz and acclaim.
His 10-part "The Galleons" and many othe poems in the book explores colonialism using the Spanish galleon ship as symbol, coming to his birth country of The Philippines.
Part 9 of The Galleons is a wandering walk around Madrid, noting its wide "empire boulevards" and wondering if his Filipino hero José Rizal walked these same streets as a medical student in Madrid.
"A Girl Carrying a Ladder" - Another poem notes a young Palestinian girl he sees in a magazine who carries a ladder with her to school - scaling barbed wire fences to go to her school each day...
"I see the photograph of the Palestinian girl who carries a ladder with her each morning when she goes to school...carrying the ladder that is two or three times as tall as she is, leaning the ladder against the wall that separates her from school, the girl goes up the ladder as though it were something she did every day, which she does..."
His 10-part "The Galleons" and many othe poems in the book explores colonialism using the Spanish galleon ship as symbol, coming to his birth country of The Philippines.
Part 9 of The Galleons is a wandering walk around Madrid, noting its wide "empire boulevards" and wondering if his Filipino hero José Rizal walked these same streets as a medical student in Madrid.
"A Girl Carrying a Ladder" - Another poem notes a young Palestinian girl he sees in a magazine who carries a ladder with her to school - scaling barbed wire fences to go to her school each day...
"I see the photograph of the Palestinian girl who carries a ladder with her each morning when she goes to school...carrying the ladder that is two or three times as tall as she is, leaning the ladder against the wall that separates her from school, the girl goes up the ladder as though it were something she did every day, which she does..."
im_lovin_itt's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
shannon_magee's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.25
ben_t_g's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
5.0
I woke up today thinking of my disappointing publishing history as a poet. I can write interestingly, but there’s nothing interesting about me. Rick Barot shifts the focus outward, writing with curiosity and empathy about people in the past, reaching emotional crescendos with straightforward language and traditional punctuation. He’s about my age, so perhaps there’s some Gen X impulse in looking outward, since as a generation, we don’t like to be looked at.
Anyway, it’s a consistently strong book, and I’m reading it at the right time for me.
Anyway, it’s a consistently strong book, and I’m reading it at the right time for me.