Title: Rain and Embers
Author: Ali Nuri
Genres: Poetry, #Ownsvoices
Publisher: Lion’s Den
Format: e-Book
ISBN: 9780578559001
Summary: An urgent and necessary study in dualities, Ali Nuri offers a migrant’s perspective on what it means to be torn between East and West, sun and moon, the past and the present. Following the story of a refugee in a constant state of flux, Rain and Embers encapsulates the human condition–one where a sense of belonging is elusive amidst an ever-changing landscape.
What I Loved About Rain and Embers
I was excited to read Rain & Embers because finding a collection of poetry that I really enjoy has proven difficult for me in the past. But Nuri’s book had the perfect formatting for me. The poems were not too short to where I barely understood the meaning, and not to long so that I didn’t get lost or lose interest. I also had yet to read a poetry book with these themes
and it intrigued me.
Rain & Embers is an easy to read, easy to feel collection of poetry. It didn’t take long for me to gather the themes and emotions of this book. I enjoyed the way Nuri merged two languages throughout the book, telling the story in a different form that doesn’t always require the reader to fully understand what is being said. I found Nuri’s line use enjoyable and pleasing to the eye throughout Rain & Embers. Nuri uses short lines that make the poems seamless and easy to follow, the end and beginning of each line proving an emphasis I otherwise may not have caught.
The way Nuri made his book almost feel like poetic journal entries was a beneficial choice when writing his book. It took me a step further inside the writer’s mind; much like in the poem Pantone 448 C when he wrote “a prisoner refugee places in Saudi concentration camps–money branded it with a pretty name”. This style of writing made me see and feel the way Nuri worked to change his perception of the word, and it was a pleasant surprise to find whilst reading.
What I Wished I Loved
I found the use of random capitalization to be a bit distracting. While I enjoyed the reading of shorter lines, separating the sections of each poem on either side of the page would have made the poem look more uniform and complete. Rather than having large open spaces on each page.
While I found many of the titles of each poem more intriguing than the last, there were some that I felt did not fit or were even misleading to the poem itself. I found myself referring back to the top of the page to try and decipher the meaning behind the name after reading the poem.
Rain & Embers was that I found it to be a page turning, eye opening, diamond in the rough. Aside from the minute issues I had with the book, I found the story to be one that truly struck me and I felt I was able to empathize with experiences that I did not witness myself. It gave me the opportunity to understand even a glimpse of a life different than my own, within the confines of my home. I applaud Ali Nuri for opening up about his experiences in such a raw way, that could make this big world feel smaller and more understanding for his readers.
