It’s hard to talk about a powerful piece of work. It’s hard to give a comprehensive overview of it while also trying to impart the effect it had on me while reading. Such is the case with Nayyirah Waheed’s collection of poems, salt.
I call it a powerful piece of work because of how strongly I connected to it. It’s as if she was speaking to me, as if we had lived the same life and had the same experiences. Many facets of my life and personality is expressed in Waheed’s poems: my love of nature and art; my willingness to write; being Black and female; being an immigrant. It’s one of few books I’ve read and seen myself reflected back at me and for that I appreciate and treasure this collection of poems.
I must also thank Darkowaa, whose wonderful review of salt. drove me to pick it up and give it a try. I don’t regularly read poetry. In fact, I don’t like poems. My high-school AP classes scarred me in that regard. But I liked the poem Darkowaa highlighted in her review. It’s one of my favorites in the collection. Here it is:
Zezee with Books 