First published 2018
Tanella Boni stands witness to the ethnic violence tearing through the Ivory Coast in the early 2000s. Her poems place this brutal reality within a mythic landscape where ancestors walk among the living and elemental forces operate as independent powers. The sun, wind, and water move beyond mere symbols to become active participants in the unfolding tragedy. Political leaders wield both magical influence and petty cruelties over their subjects. Boni searches through this chaos for the right words, hunting for letters that might capture the perfect expression of what she observes. She maps personal and collective trauma onto ancient patterns of power and survival. The poet acknowledges a crucial distinction between wanting to hope and actually hoping, yet she continues to affirm her desire for something beyond the cycle of ethno-cultural and state violence surrounding her.
Genres: literary-fiction, african-literature, poetry
Vibes: intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: mythic-elements, search-for-meaning, witness-to-tragedy
Setting: Ivory Coast
Period: Early 2000s
90 pages · ebook · University of Nebraska Press
Content warnings: violence