While I'm not that proficient at reading poems and, therefore, do not understand greater, hidden messages in the poems that I read, I very much enjoyed what I did understand.

This is the first poetry book I've ever read btw.

:)

DAMN.

Okay, I really think I need to read this one more time before I definitively settle on a rating. But it honestly feels like a 5-star read. Which is crazy to me because it's a POEM! My least favorite type of thing to read might end up being one of my favorite reads of 2018.

Built on a foundation of love and relationships, , said the shotgun to the head. is an emotional poem tackling topics such as the state of the United States, the patriarchy, religion, gun violence, women's rights, and so much more. It packed such a punch for me and I was just reading it going "yes Yes YES" over and over.

I really loved this and I'm so glad I gave it a shot. This is something that will stick with me for a very long time and will likely find itself a spot on my Top Books of 2018.

Read for the 7 in 7 Readathon 2018

Definitely riffing on the beats, Saul Williams channels the voice of a man on the verge of madness who foretells the coming of the female messiah who will burn the patriarchy and cleanse the world or maybe just unleash some kind of spiritual apocalypse. But it's also, you know, a declaration of love. I think I prefer Saul Williams in song form, but this is a quick but dense proclamation.

I could tell there were some great ideas in this, but this style of poetry wasnt for me. It's so frustrating when you dont understand why the author is trying to say. its so MADDENING.

im not one to judge whether poetry is good or bad, but this was not for me. it was confusing.

there were a fews stanzas i bookmarked but on the whole, it wasnt very enjoyable just reading a poetry book, lost for 95% of it.

"intelligence is intuitive
you needn't learn to love
unless you've been taught
to fear and hate"

I don't read much poetry, because a lot of the times, I worry too much about whether or not I'm understanding the message. And while there was definitely parts of this I wasn't fully understanding, it was still an absolutely wonderful read. The parts that I did understand were moving and powerful and just so well written. Not only that, but the way the words are presented, in different fonts, shapes, and sizes, makes this so unique. In 182 pages, Saul Williams tackles so many topics, from religion to war to social injustice, while the actual "story" centers around a kiss. This book was published in 2003, but it still rings very true today. I highly recommend this, whether you're a big poetry reader or not.

2.75 stars
Only liked two "chapters" the rest was just gibberish

I've read it a couple of times, and it seems different every time.
It's a bit Allen Ginsberg, a bit E.E. Cummings, a bit Hollywood, a bit blues, and bit hatred, a bit love, and a bit paprika. It's artsy and lively. The type is unique, anbd you really get the true feeling of the words. You can hear the voice of the poem as if you were at a concert and stereo hi-fi. It's amazing. Read it OUT LOUD.

not sure how i feel about this yet.
review to come.
also regardless of how i feel i hope this is the first review i write on my blog again. it's been a while since i posted there and i want to be back to it.

Not even half of this made sense to me so I'm not going to rate it.
All I can say is that I saw a lot of potential and interesting topics (not only love but also social commentary and political stuff), but the format just didn't work for me.
I already knew either I was going to love this or don't get it but I wanted to try it anyway.
I marked some interesting pages and parts, but everything else... nope.

so where is that voice from nowhere?
that burning bush?
the passing dove?
(...)
can he be heard over the gunfire
the whizz passing missles
the crash of buildings
the cries of the children
the crack of bones
the shriek of sirens?

or is that his mighty voice?

your angry god
craving the sacrifice

Харесвам музиката на Saul Williams, който, както го определя wikipedia, е "performer known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop". Текстовете му са на светлинни години от класическата представа за hip hop lyrics; поетични четения, постоянни експерименти, превъплъщения и бродения из всякакви "арт"- дебри на модерното изкуство- с това го свързвам основно. Интересното при Saul е, че поезията е ключов и константен елемент. Хаотично константен:

When Williams was asked what the point of poetry was, he said: "I'm making this up, I have no idea but here we go. I think that it would be to express, to share, to relieve, to explore. For me, poetry offers some what of a cathartic experience. I am able to move through emotions and emotional experience particularly, you know, break-ups, difficulties in all the things that I may face, whether that is with an industry or a loved one or whomever, there needs to be an infiltration process, like you have a window open over there. That is the purpose of poetry: it is the window that opens, that allows some air in, some other insight, some other possibility so we can explore all that we feel, all that we think but with the space to see more than what we know, because there is so much more than we know. If I didn't open myself to the possibilities of the unknown, then I would be lost."

Тази стихосбирка (ако изобщо се води стихосбирка) я възприех по-скоро като free- flow poetry. Saul е разгневен- на американската нация, на Бог, на себе си; Saul e влюбен- в американската нация, в Бог (Нея), в себе си. Saul търси смисъл, но същевременно твърди, че го е открил. Едно е сигурно- той няма търпение да ни разкрие прозренията си ("He is the babbling man you cross the street to avoid. He is the unavoidable end before the new beginning. (...) my path now crystal clear./ i AM COME TO TELL YOU") .
Всичко това, разбъркано в сърцето на хаотичния му ум, преливащ от емоции и впечаления. Мисли, пуснати да си се реят свободно в пространството.

J: How would you characterize the subconscious of America, in particular, the
youth of America?
MC: As characterized. We are acting out the parts of age old scripts.
J: Is there any way past that?
MC: No.
J: Then wouldn't that render your work useless?
MC: No.
J: Why not?
MC: There's always room for improvisation.

Книгата е пълна с препратки- история, съвремие, музика, литература, новини, теология. Прелива обаче и от абсолютни небивалици, странни изказвания и натуралистични (понякога направо гадни) сравнения и метафори, които ме отблъскваха ужасно; идваше ми да я зарежа. Ненавиждам такъв тип поезия. Saul може би прави опити с вулгарност да грабне интереса на младата публика, но с мен постигна точно обратния ефект:
i am thankful for the trees
shaped into coffins
that we now shred
to bed these words
within our cores

***
the truth was in his vomit
she is within us

***
i prayed
and then threw up

***
it was weird because i've been wanting to throw up
i've been feeling the need to
a need i've never felt before

***
i have commited myself
to adultery
i will only sleep
with GOD's wife

our affair
is no secret
he gets his thrills
from watching us

***
teach me
thy ways
o lord

steady my hands
upon your breasts
and guide me
to your altar

swallow me whole

so that i may
be born
again

***
God has hair
on her pussy
and waits
burning with desire
for you

В един момент нещата направо си излязоха извън контрол с откровени facepalm глупости:
throw away your map
and swallow
this cratered pill

pull it from the sky
and let it dissolve
under your tongue

it is only a matter of time
before we are timeless

do you feel it yet?

wow

i can trace
each shadow
back to its origin

can you feel it yet?

drink more water
take deeper breaths

wow

why have i been
so afraid of love?
so afraid of being vulnerable?
so afraid of being open?

it's like
every mannerism and gesture
was a lie
some sort of shield
to protect me
from the judgment
of others

oh my god
turn the music up

wow

do you feel that bass line?

it feels like a snake

how could you now
yield to temptation?

why would you not?

dance!

yeah!

Но като оставя всичко това настрана, посланията му ("we are exiting your colosseum") са смислени. Замисля, провокира, изпълва те с енергия- било то и съвсем малка частичка от пожарите в сърцето и ума на Saul.

Here's a simpler question: Have you ever lost yourself in a kiss? I mean pure psychedelic inebriation. (...) A kiss that confirms that the universe is aligned, that the world's greatest resource is love, and maybe even that God is a woman. With or without a belief in God, all kisses are metaphors decipherable by allocations of time, circumstance, and understanding.

This book is a result of a kiss.


***
NOTE:
BOOKS ARE CAREFULLY FOLDED FORESTS
void of autumn
BOUND FROM THE
SUN

***
they blindfolded her
and spun her
in circles
so she would
find her way here
by no other means
than her intuition

and
she
is
come

i am a simple disoriented man
in her presence

***
i am like a survivor
of the flood
walking through the streets
drenched with
God
surprised that all of the
drowned victims
are still walking and talking

maybe there's hope
i rush to each victim's side
sucking what i can of you
out of your various
incarnations

***
she kissed
as if she, alone,
could forge
the signature
of the sun

i closed my eyes
although
i never knew
the difference
i stood before
a brighter light
at lesser
distance

***
rivers
like oceans
oceans
like answers
questions
in cloud forms
raindrops
in stanzas

to be
or not to...

to see
or not to...

***
as smiles slowly rise on our facеs like the time between 6:24 and 6:39 over the skyline

***
walking off into the will of the divine wind {
***
o my friends,
the greatest americans
have not been born yet
they are waiting patiently
for the past
to die

***
DEAD to themselves
numb to the possibility
of truth existing beyond
that which they can palm
in the bleeding hole
of their hands,

***
JOURNALIST: What are you working on?

MANED CHARACTER: An attack of the subconscious.

J: Why?

MC: Because it's eating us alive.

***
J: Aren't you, then, doing the universe or humanity or the future some sort of
disservice by writing it down.

MC: Not really. Even with the literacy rates going up, people don't read as much as they did in the past, or rather the written word doesn't carry as much weight. Or, at least, newly written words don't. We're still living out an old testament. What i'm dong is sort of a LYRICAL hacking. i'm figuring a way to fool the database into thinking that this book is older than it is. i've sampled elements of the code and dated aspects of the language. Sort of like post dating a check, but in reverse. Thus, the signals and symbols being sent to the database are old yet they register in a different way. And when the individual reading a passage decides to quit and then is asked by the database whether or not they would like to save the changes made to the document, i am hoping that they will mechanically click "yes".

J: And what if people don't read it?

MC: It will already be bound.

J: Bound?

MC: Yes, a book is always bound. And written word is often bound...to happen. It increases its likelihood. But really, as long as MTV markets it right, it should reach a lot of people. It's carefully designed for the short attention span.

***
I HAVE SEEN THE MOON
IN A SUN DRESS

the ocean
beneath her
rippling in laughter
at the sight

***
come see
how death is a myth

there are no deceased
only deceived
death only awaits
those who believed

i surrendered
my beliefs
and found myself
at the tree of life
injecting my story
into the veins
of leaves
only to find that stories
like forests
are subject to seasons

***
come, my love
we have oceans to sail

I bought this on a whim. I missed reading poetry and added a million books to my TBR and then I ordered two of them - this was one.
So... this might be my favorite poetry book I have ever read now. I haven't read that many, I admit, but that doesn't make this one less amazing. I read around 60 pages yesterday, and then I read the rest today because I just couldn't stop. It was just that good. (How many times did I say read now? Too many. Too lazy to come up with better wording.)
The style itself is so up my alley, playing with words in a way I adored, even though it was hard to grasp and nonsensical at times. I didn't understand everything, but I don't even think it matters, because I FELT everything. (Pretentious? Maybe. But I mean it.)
It's not just the writing I adored, though. It's the topics.
This book came out in - what, 2003? and yet, it feels so relevant for this time we live in. Especially with everything going on in America right now - and I'm not American, but I have eyes and ears and a heart. Also social media.
So what is this about? you may wonder. This book is centered around... a kiss. Or a love story. Or whatever you want to call it. But Williams talked about much more than that: religion, war, the patriarchy, etc. etc. It moved me to tears. I'm so glad I read it.