Status
Genres
Publication
Description
Poems from the author of The Color Purple: "This book has two fine strengths--a music that comes along sometimes [and] Walker's own tragicomic gifts" (The New York Times Book Review). The title of this collection comes from a Native American shaman who, reflecting on the terrible problems brought by white colonizers, nearly forgave them all because with the settlers came horses to the North American Plains. And, indeed, in these poems we find Alice Walker seeking a saving grace even in the most difficult circumstances, and in the hearts of the most brutal oppressors. Here Walker's attention turns toward the small moments and subliminal exchanges between lovers and enemies, even as her verse addresses concerns as vast as the choking of the planet by war and pollution. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Alice Walker including rare photos from the author's personal collection.… (more)
User reviews
"My father and mother both / used to warn me / that 'a whistling woman and a crowing / hen
And I remember my mother reciting that same verse, and, like Walker, she chose to "whistle like a woman undaunted."
And there was also her excitement at an upcoming visit, and preparations made, in "My Daughter Is Coming!" A pretty universal experience for older folks.
And "" Poem at Thirty-nine" is about a father - " How I miss my father," who taught her to tell the truth, thrift, and cooking
"He would have grown / to admire / the woman I've become: / cooking, writing, chopping wood, / staring into the fire."
But then there's that steely, strange dedication to her ancestors, including a "white great-great grandfather ... / whose only remembered act / is that he raped / A child: / my great-great grandmother, / who bore his son, / my great grandfather, / when she was eleven"
Chilling, yes. And courageous. And nearly inconceivable to this old white man.
This is a book filled with joy and pain, life and living. And certainly worth your time. HORSES MAKE A LANDSCAPE LOOK MORE BEAUTIFUL (a quote from Lame Deer) is a long title for a short book. I rarely read poems, but I liked these. Highly recommended.
- Tim Bazzett,author of the memoir, BOOKLOVER