Ink Knows No Borders

Starred review from January 15, 2019
A compilation of 65 poems that offer diverse and distinct narratives about the immigrant and refugee experiences.From being the child of immigrants to being a child immigrant, this collection contains stories of those pursuing the American dream--which sometimes turns into a nightmare. The duality and halfness of the immigrant or refugee identity, the pride, shame, and confusion it can bring, are explored in heartbreaking, breathtaking words. This collection cuts right to the heart of the matter at a time when it is most relevant. But as these pieces--originally published between 1984 and 2018--show, immigration stories are perennially relevant. Authors take their pain and use it to paint gripping accounts of racism, culture shock, separation from family, and the splitting of one's self that so often occur when dwelling within, outside, and along borders. It is but a glimpse into all the hardships--emotional, physical, mental and otherwise--that displaced people face. The poems take a variety of forms, and the contributors and their families have origins in Nigeria, the Philippines, South Korea, Pakistan, Guyana, Mexico, Syria, Sudan, Guam, Russia, Turkey, and more. Some contributors' names will be familiar to YA readers, including Elizabeth Acevedo, Samira Ahmed, and Gary Soto.This symphony of poetry is a necessary series of bruises and balms that will comfort those who have endured, uplift those who continue to struggle, and educate others. (contents, editors' note, foreword, afterword, biographies) (Poetry/memoir. 12-adult)

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March 1, 2019
Grades 8-12 In this collection, Vecchione and Raymond have gathered 64 poets from all over the world, their poetic voices as diverse as their experiences. Yet, they hold one element in common: a belief in dignity as an essential human right. The poems explore identity, migration, immigration, war, belonging, race, class?sometimes on their own, but often at intersections. In "Mamma," Emtithal Mahmoud confronts a man who objectifies her dark skin by claiming an affinity: she lets him know exactly how little right he has to make such a claim. In "quaking conversation," Lenelle Mo�se announces, i want to talk about haiti, and lists the ways humans have wreaked more damage than nature. And Yosimar Reyes laments the dearth of memories of a childhood before he crossed the southern border into the U.S. in "Undocumented Joy." Most poems in this are raw with passion, variously eloquent and verbose, mostly in blank verse with few creative risks involved. But form is secondary to content here, and these stories should resonate with youth who feel life deeply.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2019
Edited by Patrice Vecchione and Alyssa Raymond. This piercing poetry collection's sixty-four pieces (many previously published) in a variety of forms mourn loss, celebrate survival, and explore breaking and remaking self and home. The poets--immigrants and refugees themselves, or from immigrant households--tackle topics including racism, displacement, assimilation, and resilience. The contributors all offer timely, culturally specific frames for the universal struggle of growing into oneself. Appended with brief poet biographies. Ind.

(Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from July 1, 2019
Poems as piercing and reflective as the shards of a shattered mirror offer stunning glimpses into the lives and experiences of immigrants and refugees. Sixty-four pieces (many previously published) in a variety of forms capture an outcry of voices mourning loss, celebrating survival, breaking and remaking self and home. It's one thing to major in Ethnic Studies, / it's another to be the reason / for its existence. Poets who are immigrants and refugees themselves or who grew up in immigrant households tackle topics including racism, finding a place in displacement, the violence of assimilation, and family resilience. You claim your joy. / You lay your roots: / Blood and bone and fire and ash. / And in this land of the free and home of the brave, you plant yourself. As readers move through the collection's dense emotional landscape, they will encounter cultures from around the world, as well as several familiar children's and YA authors, including Bao Phi, Samira Ahmed, and Elizabeth Acevedo. The contributors all offer timely, and timeless, culturally specific frames for the universal struggle of growing into oneself. Appended brief biographies for each of the poets further root their words in lived experiences. Readers will be gratified to see them?and possibly resonances of themselves?in all their rich, intersectional fullness. anastasia m. collins

(Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)