4 out of 4 stars
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An Immigrant’s Lament, by Mois Benarroch, is like a personal love letter. Within, Benarroch writes to both himself as well as his family; past and present loves, fathers, grandfathers, friends. It’s incredibly calming and relaxing, as well as easy to read. Being in college, I read poems in between classes and still feel myself being sucked into the writing. Because of that, I’m giving it 4 out of 4 stars.
The first poem is like a beginning and an ending, all wrapped up into one. Most of the poems are short but sweet. Some feel like personal essays, others like short letters to the reader about this and that. I’m not entirely sure the background of some of the poems, but I can tell the author put a lot of feeling into the book. No poem feels like a cop-out or a lazy day. Many poems are very personal; there’s plenty about grandfathers, fathers, and sons. There are also poems about marriage; it’s a very family-oriented book. And, of course, we can’t forget the magnum opus of the entire book; the ‘Immigrant’s Lament’, so to say, the first poem of the book. That one poem alone is enough for me to recommend the book to you.
Now, I’m going to preface this by saying that I’m not much into poetry. I find fiction is oftentimes much more successful in distracting me from day to day life. With An Immigrant’s Lament, I didn’t quite want to be distracted. It was distracting to a degree, yes, but it still made me think about things that I would not normally think about. It really feels like a love letter to Benarroch’s past and present.
Immigrant’s Lament ends with a sort of self-portrait poem, which fits in perfectly with the tone of the entire book. The final poem, "Self Portrait of the Poem" in a Family Mirror, really wraps up the book in a neat bow. In "Self Portrait," Benarroch waves back and forth between who he is as a person. As a reader, you can really feel the emotion that he’s trying to convey.
If poetry is your thing, I completely recommend this book. I feel you will be thoroughly satisfied. And even if poetry isn’t your thing, I still recommend this book. Take it from someone else who isn’t much of a poetry aficionado: It’s genuinely worth your time. And, the Kindle version is only 3.99 on Amazon! It’s a steal.
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The Immigrant's Lament
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