An amateurish but heartfelt effort.
A collection of water-themed poetry and photographs of the northern Florida Keys.
Hart, an avid swimmer, combines her fascinations with water, the written word, and imagery in this book. “Water is the moods of power and creation,” the author states at the start of this massive tome, divided into four sections by season. The work centers on themes of love, the benevolent qualities of the universe, and the heart’s ability to heal. The poems are primarily motivational and inspirational in nature; they aim to uplift. “Miracles happen all the time,” states the narrator in “True.” Many entries take the form of communication between two people or entities. “Tears” reads like dialogue between the wind and a soul; in “Carry On,” a conversation takes place between a bird and a tree. Other poems, like “Grateful,” resemble written prayers; some are as succinct as one line, and none surpass a page. Interspersed throughout are images of the sun sinking into the horizon, sea gulls crisscrossing the sky, solitary sailboats bobbing along, and shadowy silhouettes of people captured from behind. This is less a book of poetry than a string of feel-good statements arranged in stanzas. The rhyme schemes are erratic and the subjects nebulous. There is little scene-setting or characterization. “A pilot stood near some trees” is as descriptive as it gets. Occasionally, the poet lands on an apt simile, such as, “We are united, / like the seashells with the sand.” Those seeking simple comfort will find it here in meditations like “Mind” (“A loving memory is only / one thought away, and it / can change everything”) or “Omniscience” (“Love lives in the spirit / of everything”). This might serve well as a coffee-table book, though the photographs are grainy and the cursive font interferes with the reading experience at times.
An amateurish but heartfelt effort.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-9854824-8-0
Page Count: 252
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: March 10, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A heartwarming and inspiring story for animal lovers.
The third volume in the Elephant Whisperer series.
In this follow-up to An Elephant in My Kitchen, Malby-Anthony continues her loving portrait of the Thula Thula wildlife reserve, which she co-founded in 1998 with her late husband, South African conservationist Lawrence Anthony, who published the first book in the series, The Elephant Whisperer, in 2009. Following his death in 2012, Malby-Anthony sought to honor his legacy by continuing his vision “to create a massive conservancy in Zululand, incorporating our land and other small farms and community land into one great big game park.” At the same time, the elephants gave her “a sense of purpose and direction.” In the Zulu language, thula means quiet, and though the author consistently seeks to provide that calm to her charges, peace and tranquility are not always easy to come by at Thula Thula. In this installment, Malby-Anthony discusses many of the challenges faced by her and her staff, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. These included an aggressive, 2-ton rhino named Thabo; the profound loss felt by all upon the death of their elephant matriarch, Frankie; difficulty obtaining permits and the related risk of having to relocate or cull some of their animals; the fear of looting and fire due to civil unrest in the region; and the ongoing and potentially deadly struggles with poachers. Throughout, the author also shares many warm, lighthearted moments, demonstrating the deep bond felt among the humans and animals at the reserve and the powerful effects of the kindness of strangers. “We are all working in unity for the greater good, for the betterment of Thula Thula and all our wildlife….We are humbled by the generosity and love, both from our guests and friends, and from strangers all around the world,” writes the author. “People’s open-hearted support kept us alive in the darkest times.”
A heartwarming and inspiring story for animal lovers.Pub Date: April 25, 2023
ISBN: 9781250284259
Page Count: 320
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
An exquisitely original celebration of American Blackness.
A potent series of “notes” paints a multidimensional picture of Blackness in America.
Throughout the book, which mixes memoir, history, literary theory, and art, Sharpe—the chair of Black studies at York University in Toronto and author of the acclaimed book In the Wake: On Blackness and Being—writes about everything from her family history to the everyday trauma of American racism. Although most of the notes feature the author’s original writing, she also includes materials like photographs, copies of letters she received, responses to a Twitter-based crowdsourcing request, and definitions of terms collected from colleagues and friends (“preliminary entries toward a dictionary of untranslatable blackness”). These diverse pieces coalesce into a multifaceted examination of the ways in which the White gaze distorts Blackness and perpetuates racist violence. Sharpe’s critique is not limited to White individuals, however. She includes, for example, a disappointing encounter with a fellow Black female scholar as well as critical analysis of Barack Obama’s choice to sing “Amazing Grace” at the funeral of the Rev. Clementa Pinckney, who was killed in a hate crime at the Mother Emmanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina. With distinct lyricism and a firm but tender tone, Sharpe executes every element of this book flawlessly. Most impressive is the collagelike structure, which seamlessly moves among an extraordinary variety of forms and topics. For example, a photograph of the author’s mother in a Halloween costume transitions easily into an introduction to Roland Barthes’ work Camera Lucida, which then connects just as smoothly to a memory of watching a White visitor struggle with the reality presented by the Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Alabama. “Something about this encounter, something about seeing her struggle…feels appropriate to the weight of this history,” writes the author. It is a testament to Sharpe’s artistry that this incredibly complex text flows so naturally.
An exquisitely original celebration of American Blackness.Pub Date: April 25, 2023
ISBN: 9780374604486
Page Count: 392
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2023
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