 |
| Scanned copy of book cover, ligature strain poems by Kim Koga |
The Chapbook ligature
strain poems by Kim Koga plays with form as it seems to connect individual
poems in a story in a format one would normally read in fiction that is the
text is in a row after row not a few words and enter and new line. However it still reads like a poem because
they are not complete sentences. The
poems connect to tell a story about the experiences of a beaver. They are very personal experiences. One reason is the use of the second person,
you or your. I gather that the reader is
this female beaver that we learn is pregnant and is dealing with the life
struggles she has to go through. The
first mention of you rather your is only a comparison, "…like your feet in dirt
in calm soil brown and dark and webbed…"it does not catch on at first to the
reader that you’re a beaver, but turn the page and there is the words"…brown
oiled fur in water to repel or release your pink child into water or wood…" It proceeds to touch on daily habits of beavers,
but what really stands out is the writers’ desire to have you, the reader feel
like what a pregnant beaver is going through.
It is adult intellectual reading.
It is very smart. The ligature
strain is a reference to feeding her pups milk by her teats. I would describe this as a beautiful and
graphic portrayal of nature in specific, one pregnant beaver.
Ligature Strain poems by Kim Koga are available from Tin Fish Press Retro Series No. 6.
Thanks Kim Koga for allowing me to review this here.
Ligature Strain poems by Kim Koga are available from Tin Fish Press Retro Series No. 6.
Thanks Kim Koga for allowing me to review this here.
