Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head
Shortlisted for the 2022 Felix Dennis Prize
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Vintage Publishing
Published:10th Mar '22
Should be back in stock very soon
Warsan Shire’s Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head is a poignant debut collection that delves into migration, womanhood, and resilience.
In Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head, Warsan Shire explores themes of migration, womanhood, trauma, and resilience through her powerful poetry. The collection is a heartfelt journey that captures the struggles and triumphs of individuals navigating their identities amidst the complexities of life. Shire's unique voice resonates deeply, drawing from her personal experiences as well as the stories of those around her. Each poem serves as a testament to the strength found in vulnerability and the beauty that emerges from hardship.
The collection introduces readers to a young girl who, without a nurturing guide, forges her own path toward womanhood. Shire’s words weave together the rich tapestry of her life and the lives of her loved ones, painting vivid images of refugees, immigrants, and the intricate relationships between mothers and daughters. The poems are infused with sensory details, from the music and weeping of everyday life to the fragrant smells of blood, perfume, and jasmine, creating an immersive experience for the reader.
Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head is not just a poetry collection; it is a celebration of survival and resilience. Each poem invites readers to reflect on their own experiences and come away transformed. Shire’s work is a powerful reminder of the strength found in our stories and the connections we share.
I have long been a massive fan of Warsan Shire's extraordinarily gifted poetry. Her exquisite, memorable and finely-tuned poems articulate a depth of experience that never fails to surprise and profoundly move me, as she so powerfully gives voice to the unspoken -- Bernardine Evaristo
An incredible collection -- Candice Carty-Williams * Stylist *
Shire invokes the creative powers of the writer to transform one's past... Vital, moving and courageous, this is a debut not to be missed -- Mary Jean Chan * 'The best recent poetry' - Guardian *
It is absolutely astonishing how much emotion, intelligence, imagination, and truth Warsan Shire can get into one collection. She is a poet of the highest order, with a compassionate heart, and a limitless mind -- Benjamin Zephaniah
Must-read poetry from the superstar Somali-British writer Warsan Shire * Stylist *
Warsan Shire... explores trauma, womanhood and migration so magnificently that even Beyoncé has quoted her * Harper's Bazaar *
I read Warsan Shire's eagerly awaited debut poetry collection, Bless the Daughter Raised By a Voice in Her Head, greedily, in one giant gulp. It surpassed my expectations, and shortly after I turned the final page of this collection, I wanted more -- Sana Goyal * Guardian *
Shire's strikingly beautiful imagery leverages the specificity of her own womanhood, love life, tussles with mental health, grief, family history, and stories from the Somali diaspora, to make them reverberate universally... Enthralling... The poetry in Bless the Daughter soothes, even while it picks at the scabs of the wounds that cause trauma -- Dzifa Benson * Daily Telegraph *
Powerful metaphors characterise Warsan Shire's Bless the Daughter Raised By a Voice in Her Head, a book of blessings, of ecstasy through trauma, in particular the trauma of the refugee * Irish Times *
Poetry is a sure-fire way to change your mental landscape and this long-awaited collection from the Somali-British poet/Beyoncé collaborator combines poems about war and migration with celebrations of joy -- Justine Jordan * '60 ways to turn your world upside down' - Guardian *
ISBN: 9781784743703
Dimensions: 206mm x 145mm x 12mm
Weight: 193g
96 pages