james1star's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
I love the way this poetry collection starts with Taylor’s preface opening ‘This is a book of silences’ perfectly setting the tone for what C+nto will be. I found the preface (and glossary) very helpful in understanding both the order of the poems and she gives insight to what each section contains - some of the poems were maybe a little abstract and tangential losing my focus at times - so I highly recommend reading this first. The book is spilt into three distinct sections: the collections namesake ‘C+nto’ (2) is the second, sandwiched between ‘Vitrine’ and ‘Vitrine Reprise’ (1) which is its continuation, and the largest last is titled ‘O, Maryville’ (3) - the (no) is how I’ll address each section.
In (1), Taylor tells the stories of scenes within glass display cases which have replaced/be placed next to certain queer sites. From the preface, ‘Each case holds a different scene: first loves, bar fights, arrests, explosions, serpentine Pride marches, an old drag queen, a woman circling a boxing ring, and the old Maryville, a fictious dyke dive bar.’ Following its stated this will be a ‘… walk through the maze of vitrines, one consistent narrative told in separate parts’ and on the whole I did like these sections where the reoccurring notion of absence and loss is explored.
This is expanded on in (2) which acts as part memoir at times, which ‘focus[es] on the loss of my friends, and of my exile as a consequence of my sexuality’ talking about the author growing up queer in the 1980s with a quote that’s stuck with me: ‘First, they take your mouth. Then the whole of your body… I wear the abuse as a suit.’ In this part, there are seven poems taking us though Taylor’s life in essence, each titled ‘the body as battleground / protest / trespass / cemetery / backroom / haunted house / uprising’ and all of these I didn’t necessarily enjoy given their content but understood, I took my time rereading parts to truly grapple with the meaning. One of my favourite parts of the book comes at the end of the last poem here - in the following quote I’ve used ‘/‘ to demarcate where an extended space is (‘ ‘)
‘I can't remember / the names / of all my dead friends but / they are here now / our grief / a leather jacket / our laughter / static / as we / fade to a sepia / the colour
of blood mixed to water / disappearing down a plug hole much like the meeting / of our legs’
From the preface, something else is very much a part of the (2) section in how the idea of ‘butch’ lesbians have been and still are marginalised within the queer community. Taylor states ‘this book is set in what is now thought of as the 'golden age of the gay', we have regressed as a community. Our meeting places, clubs and bars have closed… We inhabit separate rooms in the same club.’ adding ‘If we were to regain the real-life meeting grounds, if we were to be in the same room, then perhaps we would remember our commonality.’ Speaking to both the loss of certain queer spaces where lesbians felt community and safety and the growing infighting within the queer movement.
This is also touched and expanded on in (3) which tells the tale of one night at ‘Maryville’ a fictitious dyke bar in the mid/late 1990s. There are four ‘characters’ whom turn up here based on people Taylor knew in some sense, called ‘Dudizile, Angel, Valentine, and Jack Catch’ who are there to make sure patrons and the bar are kept safe, examining their lives and that of butch lesbians at the time. This section is based on the authors own experiences at such bars but she’s also done research which together ‘construct[ed] a simple story: exile, friendship, grief, love, courage and threat’ and whilst I cannot know what it’s like to be someone in this situation, Taylor paints a vivid picture of such a narrative and it does flow. There are thirty two poems spilt into twelve scenes which make use of stage directions, all the poems vary in form and understanding but I did enjoy the majority. I underlined at least something in each, some more then others but I think my favourites were ‘Legend of the First Butch’ which I was really taken aback by and then the three towards the end which created an emotional response in me. These were ‘Black Triangle’ about the badges lesbians were focused to wear in nazi Germany, ‘Eulogy’ where the main character of the poem (Taylor herself I believe) is ‘carrying’ queer women from places where they’re under attack or already been killed and this is mentioned in the preface about how in nearly a quarter of the world, it’s illegal to be a lesbian. My ultimate favourite poem is that in between these last two entitled ‘December’ which starts with the final social media post by a Chechnya LGBT group in 2017 and what follows is an emotional first person account of a queer woman caught up in a raid or arrest and brings it round to other cases of discrimination, it’s really really good.
So as a whole I did enjoy reading this poetry collection, I do have a lot of praise and totally recommend giving it a read. I haven’t yet read much lesbian literature unfortunately so am happy to have read this. Like I said some parts maybe went over my head and I’d like to give this a reread again some time but overall it was good.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Lesbophobia and Misogyny
Minor: Homophobia, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Hate crime, and Suicidal thoughts
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