Things My Grandmother Said
Poems
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- $20.99
Publisher Description
A gorgeous collection of poems inspired by the strong women in award-winning poet Amit Majmudar’s life, celebrating the influence, energy, and nurturing language that have fueled his journey as person and poet
This marvelous collection opens with the practical wisdom and unforgettable wit of the poet’s grandmother, who said (among other things), “Turmeric can heal anything / but a broken heart” and “Read that to me at / my funeral, boy, right now my show is on.” From the foundation of the matriarchal, Majmudar turns to the impact of women as lovers and partners, exploring the contours of passionate, romantic, and married love; he and his wife are “two fireflies/ scooped out of the same evening” to meet in the jar where their constancy contains and sustains them. In the end, all this love transforms into the gift of language: Majmudar writes of how the Goddess in all her forms has charmed his life, giving rise to the creativity and personhood that allows him to seek and find his mother country in poetry.
A remarkable work from a man celebrating the power of the feminine to shape us and define who we are.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The formally dazzling latest from Majmudar (What He Did in Solitary) features sonnet crowns, long ghazal sequences, and Juvenalian satire, all paying homage to the women he admires, from his grandmother, mother, wife, and daughter, to Wonder Woman, Hindu goddesses, poet friends, and a nurse in a kill zone. Couplets such as "Time is a circle I can put to use:/ a wheel to roll things back, a crown, a noose," butt up against the sagacity of his grandmother, whose old-country pronouncements are a highlight: "Sure, the Ganga is holy,/ but who told you to drink from it?" Other memorable remarks include "You know why they call it India/ ink, don't you? When they burn us alive/ we write poems with the soot," and "Be a poet, okay,/ But be something else, too." A central section of erotic love poems ("The woman is the word. I have married into mystery") is followed by witty takes on modern life ("Litcoin"; "Unnatural Intelligence") and musings on invisibility ("School of Withcraft and Wizardry"). It's a tour de force.
