Mapping Me: A Landscape of
Women's Stories, edited by
Tamara Azizian, is a collection of 40 pieces written by 40 women from across
the globe. The pieces vary between poetry, short stories, thoughts, and include
a scene from a play. Mapping Me is divided into sections depending on
the main themes tackled with stunningly beautiful artwork at the beginning of
each section.
This collection boasts many
amazing pieces and I have tried to select the best of them to mention here.
Mapping Me opens with an introduction and the
sections of the book, which is then followed by the first artwork called 'Take
a Chance' by Ira Mitchell. The colours, the brush strokes, everything about
that painting is just dazzling.
'Tiny Atom' by Abha Iyengar is
a staggeringly brave story; short, to the point and highly emotional.
'Undersea', by Shahilla Sharif,
is a wonderful poem that opens with these breath-taking lines "I should have deciphered our prophecy/in the mythology of
our meeting". The words are carefully chosen throughout.
'Undersea' is one of the best poems I have ever read and certainly one of the
best in Mapping Me. It is as sad as it is magical.
'Holding the Man', by Sharanya
Manivannam, is an excellent story. It is well written, vivid and explicit. It
is a story though, not a poem – in my opinion.
One of the pieces, in this
collection, is a scene from a play called 'Happy Birthday Li'l Eagle' by Sia
Figid. A confrontation between mother and daughter, the scene is beautiful and
carries many messages. It is obviously a climactic scene in the play with many
stunning lines and speeches. It is a scene about children, love and life. A
10-star piece.
'Mama Wearies then Brightens'
by Gloria J. Wimberley is a short, funny and enjoyable poem, which I'm sure
many can relate to.
'Bloodless' by Zara Potts is
unlike anything I've ever read. It is deep and emotional, despite the apparent
'unemotional' and "bloodless" word choice. I loved these
thought-provoking words "There is
freedom in acceptance. Fighting only tightens the ropes and makes it harder to
release yourself." And the conclusion:
"even barren fields can still be beautiful and [a] fruitless tree can
still have roots." A must read.
'The Mother', by Cheryl S.
Ntumy, is a heart-wrenching piece of endurance, pain, suffering, love and
persistence.
Denise Donaldson's 'A Bra
Story' is an enjoyable, interesting story with a lovely ending.
'Full Arms and Underarms', by
Farha Hasan, is a funny short story about something all women experience:
Waxing! It is a very interesting story topic; one that is brilliantly handled
with a lot of humour.
'Thoughts in the Dark', by
Somaya El Sousi from Gaza, is an amazing must-read piece with many beautiful
lines. Similarly, 'Fear', by Danijela Hlis, is an excellent poem about
Alzheimer's. A five-star piece.
Tania Haberland's 'My
Grandmother's Art' is a beautiful and highly artistic piece. I truly enjoyed
the word choice and flow.
'Paper Confessions' by Shabnam
Piryaei is a poem of stunning imagery and an equally staggering opening verse: “regret and guilt follow me/ as if I were their mother/ stroking with
the dissolved edges of a punished whisper my arms,/ singing to themselves/
lullabies made of dead bees/ as if each does not know the other exists.”
The Matrimonial
Clock by Shweta Ganesh Kumar is an excellent story, very modern and
applicable to many third world countries and societies. It is brilliantly told.
“[it] as if, the future of the world depended
on her marital status.” This line hit a chord, many in
fact. And I'm sure many can relate to it as well. Five stars to this one.
'Inside the Ring -
The Diary', by Batsirai Easther Chigama, is another excellent piece, sad and
painful at first, but with a great conclusion. Tough decisions take time,
especially when children are involved; this five-star-story stresses this
point.
'Serepta', by
Jessica Loomis, is another beautiful and subtle story about women and the
pressures they endure because of society. It is also an excellent conclusion to
the Mapping Me collection.
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