A review by 2treads
Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head by Warsan Shire
challenging
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.0
Forgive us, we blamed you
for floods, for the flush of blood,
for men who are also wolves, even
though you could pull the tide in
by her hair, we tell everyone
we walked all over you.
–excerpt from Bless the Moon
Bless The Daughter Raised By A Voice In Her Head was my National Poetry month read and it was so much more than I expected.
🖋🖋🖋🖋🖋
Shire has a talent for reaching towards her readers with words that are raw and that create riveting poems that have the power to move you or wreck you. Poems that invite you to parallel your own experiences, the beautiful and the traumatic.
🖋🖋🖋🖋🖋
But there is also a movement towards healing and recognition in her poetry, an honesty that chills at times and an awareness of the weight of her family and identity. Centred throughout is girlhood, motherhood, and womanhood, propelling these poems through time and space as she chronicles loss, love, and divinity.
I mean Shire at this point, for me, can do no wrong with her poetry. There are poems that will gather you, tear you, teach you, grieve you, and yet still holds space for healing.
for floods, for the flush of blood,
for men who are also wolves, even
though you could pull the tide in
by her hair, we tell everyone
we walked all over you.
–excerpt from Bless the Moon
Bless The Daughter Raised By A Voice In Her Head was my National Poetry month read and it was so much more than I expected.
🖋🖋🖋🖋🖋
Shire has a talent for reaching towards her readers with words that are raw and that create riveting poems that have the power to move you or wreck you. Poems that invite you to parallel your own experiences, the beautiful and the traumatic.
🖋🖋🖋🖋🖋
But there is also a movement towards healing and recognition in her poetry, an honesty that chills at times and an awareness of the weight of her family and identity. Centred throughout is girlhood, motherhood, and womanhood, propelling these poems through time and space as she chronicles loss, love, and divinity.
I mean Shire at this point, for me, can do no wrong with her poetry. There are poems that will gather you, tear you, teach you, grieve you, and yet still holds space for healing.
Content Warnings
Minor: Domestic abuse, Violence, War, and Xenophobia