Book Review: “Surviving Home” by Katerina Canyon
“Surviving Home” by Katerina Canyon (2021)
Genre: Poetry
Page Length: 108 pages (paperback edition)
Synopsis:
Concisely arresting and challenging the beliefs of family and the fantasies of tradition, the poems in Surviving Home show that home is a place that you endure rather than a place where you are nurtured. With unyielding cadence and unparalleled sadness and warmth, Katerina Canyon contemplates the prejudice and limitations buried in a person’s African American heritage: parents that seem to care for you with one hand and slap you with the other, the secret desires to be released from the daily burdens of life, as well as the surprising ways a child chooses to amuse herself. Finding resilience in the unexpected, this collection tears down the delicate facades of family.
Review:
Surviving Home is an emotionally charged and raw book of poetry. This collection packs a punch from beginning to end as Canyon regales her traumatic childhood to brutal conflicts in today’s society. Her poems have such a lyrical quality to them and the way the collection is organized allows the stories to seamlessly blend into a bigger narrative. I appreciated the continuity of the structure and how Canyon openly shares her story and struggles with her readers. Mainly the book is a memoir as Canyon takes her time discussing the construct of home and family (especially her own) through metaphors and language in the poems. It also serves as a larger commentary on the world that surrounds us.
Reading this collection of poems felt like reading a diary of sorts. Canyon shares her reflections, nostalgia, and past conversations with her readers. At times it was difficult to read (trigger warnings for: drugs, abuse, rape), but the work as a whole reminds readers that strength can persevere in the darkest of times. I appreciated how this poem delves into history and society unapologetically. Its raw honesty drew me into the book even for a person that normally struggles with reading poetry.
Final Verdict:
FTC Disclaimer: I received this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
