Feeding the Ghosts: Poems

by Rahul Mehta

Find the beauty. In 2017, writer and educator Rahul Mehta began a writing practice to find solace and beauty—in the natural world, in their family and friends, and in everyday simplicities—during a time of political tensions, environmental disasters, a global pandemic, and personal disappointment. From the vibrant color of a blade of grass, to their dog sleeping quietly in the corner, to delicate petals fallen from a rose, a mindfulness of the beauty in their surroundings helped offset the feelings of fear, outrage, and helplessness. The result of this exercise is a profoundly moving poetry collection that explores Mehta's South Asian and Appalachian culture, their Queerness, their relationships with self and others, race, privilege, and a deep admiration of nature and the spiritual realm.

With the ear of a poet and a novelist's understanding of narrative motion, Mehta draws in the reader through humor, tenderness, and complexity. This debut poetry collection from the Lambda Literary Award–winning writer is a magnificent celebration of our own ordinary yet miraculous daily lives—an acknowledgment of the "messy beauty... ugly beauty" in the world.

Genres: Poetry

176 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 5, 2024

Reviews

[Brown Girl Bookshelf]

Through intricate storytelling and emotional depth, Rahul Mehta’s poetry collection “Feeding the Ghosts” is a captivating exploration of generational joys and traumas, healing, and the South Asian experience.

In each poem or anecdote, characters confront their ghosts, both literal and metaphorical. Woven throughout are small things that evoke nostalgia and strike a chord with the roots of our South Asian heritage across the diaspora. Mehta adeptly depicts how growth and healing are messy, obscure, and nonlinear processes. Mehta also invites readers to discover beauty in the mundane amid all of life’s challenges with vulnerability and reflection. However, this collection does not shy away from challenging topics. Mehta’s work addresses race, identity, political tensions, environmental disasters, and other difficult topics in our contemporary world. Mehta sharing relatable anecdotes that confront these issues, while also guiding readers to reflect on them in their own lives.

Rich with complexity and offering a tender exploration of the human existence, this poetry collection nourishes the soul and is sure to leave a lasting impact.

[Elizabeth Sanders · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mehta’s poems feature vivid imagery, moments of action and reflection, addresses multiple topics, and uses a variety of styles. While some topics are addressed repeatedly in different poems, each offers a new angle or experience. There are also many poems with the presence of Mehta’s dog, which always hit straight to my heart as a dog-lover. Others may find themselves drawn to the flora imagery shared in many poems, or to the themes of family and identity. In short, I think many will find something to enjoy in this collection.

My favorite poems were: My Birthright, Let Her, The Promotion, Only One, Crepe Myrtle, and I don’t Remember the Rain.

[Bandit · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most poetry doesn't stay with me the way it seems to with others, and this one was no exception. Like most poetry these days, this collection was a deeply navel-gazing experience. There are so few poems out there that aren't biographies, it seems. That said, it was an interesting perspective and a fairly compelling autobiographical journey. It shone in the small details.

[Justine Bonner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I must admit here that I know and adore Rahul. I could hear his voice in each poem and loved spending time this way.

[Danielle · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not hold my attention for very long since I felt the poems wandered here and there without clear meaning.