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RECURRENT
What if the connection, at the root of our existence, is in fact a connection and a severance? How does a sense of self form in relation to connections that hold within them such intensive ruptures and slides? How might one redefine family in such a way that severance can live with, not against, the formation of emotional connection? Darla Mottram's extraordinary first book of poems-RECURRENT-explores these questions with such generosity and vulnerability. Verse, snapshots with lyric captions, documents (letters, notations from medical records, reports of Children's Services Division), poems in prose, poems as visual fields, dreams, memories, anaphoras, among so much more-this livid variety along with the book's length brings to mind pillowy poetry books by Bernadette Mayer and Alice Notley. In RECURRENT, the speakers come to find themselves-through neglect and abandonment, passage through the foster system, and then extended-family adoption-seeking connection and autonomous selves-hood. By the book's end, the reader will come to understand that "recurrence" is the rhythm of life we must not only accept but immerse ourselves in. RECURRENT is a truly brilliant first book and signals amazing things to come from Mottram.
-Jay Ponteri, author of Someone Told Me and Wedlocked
In RECURRENT, Darla Mottram tells a story of familial abandonment, addiction, sexual abuse, violence, loss, and generational influence through her lyrical poetry, a handful of black-and-white family photographs, notes from foster-care workers, and the full text of a letter that Mottram, age seven, wrote to her mother, "whereabouts unknown, which was never delivered." Calling RECURRENT a story is imprecise, but suggests the book's central struggles with time, loss, and meaning-making. Mottram explicitly resists many of the tropes associated with mourning, maintaining that I want to / honor / what's broken / no: silver linings, phoenix rising / from ashes, lemons turned lemonade / no recovery narrative / the poem fails / to make understandable / what isn't-I don't want to fix it / I just want to hold it. This book grabbed me: out of trauma and loneliness, Mottram has created a work of insight, beauty, and humanity.
-Michele Glazer, author of Fretwork and On Tact, and the Made Up World
I don't want to fix it / I just want to hold it, Darla Mottram writes in RECURRENT. If a person can do this, can offer the materials of their life to us, in this way (photographs, reports, documents, poems, dreams, nightmares, truths ... no end or beginning to the list), if it can be held and not fixed (as it was never broken or in need of fixing), then what? I read this book and sit back in awe at this question, living in the room with me.
-Emily Kendal Frey, author of Lovability and Sorrow Arrow
-Jay Ponteri, author of Someone Told Me and Wedlocked
In RECURRENT, Darla Mottram tells a story of familial abandonment, addiction, sexual abuse, violence, loss, and generational influence through her lyrical poetry, a handful of black-and-white family photographs, notes from foster-care workers, and the full text of a letter that Mottram, age seven, wrote to her mother, "whereabouts unknown, which was never delivered." Calling RECURRENT a story is imprecise, but suggests the book's central struggles with time, loss, and meaning-making. Mottram explicitly resists many of the tropes associated with mourning, maintaining that I want to / honor / what's broken / no: silver linings, phoenix rising / from ashes, lemons turned lemonade / no recovery narrative / the poem fails / to make understandable / what isn't-I don't want to fix it / I just want to hold it. This book grabbed me: out of trauma and loneliness, Mottram has created a work of insight, beauty, and humanity.
-Michele Glazer, author of Fretwork and On Tact, and the Made Up World
I don't want to fix it / I just want to hold it, Darla Mottram writes in RECURRENT. If a person can do this, can offer the materials of their life to us, in this way (photographs, reports, documents, poems, dreams, nightmares, truths ... no end or beginning to the list), if it can be held and not fixed (as it was never broken or in need of fixing), then what? I read this book and sit back in awe at this question, living in the room with me.
-Emily Kendal Frey, author of Lovability and Sorrow Arrow
- GenresPoetry
134 pages, Paperback
Published May 24, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 13, 2024
"two selves trying / to language one / loss"
Recurrent is a cyclone of grief and love and all the small and big ways these things tear us apart. This is not a healing narrative, nor does it ask or demand you to make it so. It simply exists as witness, and witnessing it is a kindness you can grant yourself.
Recurrent is a cyclone of grief and love and all the small and big ways these things tear us apart. This is not a healing narrative, nor does it ask or demand you to make it so. It simply exists as witness, and witnessing it is a kindness you can grant yourself.
May 21, 2024
One of the best poetry collections I’ve read this year. Phenomenal writing.
May 24, 2024
Recurrent, by Darla Mottram, is an autobiographical poetry collection about the author’s childhood and life. It captures the “difficult” childhood she had—her mother’s constant abuse of drugs, her father’s negligence (even locking her up once), abuse from her father’s friend, going in and out of foster homes, her mother’s demise, among others.
From her accounts, readers get to see how she navigates all these difficult moments and how those experiences shaped her. And all that is delivered through carefully layered verses.
The book starts with a “timeline,” which provides a solid context of the writer’s life despite being compressed. This prepares the reader for what to expect.
With each poem, Mottram paints a vivid picture with words, capturing the details of her childhood—how it feels to live with people who are not your biological parents, to be in foster homes, to be abused, and to hear about your parent’s overdose.
I enjoyed the use of diverse poetic forms and styles. They felt deliberate, and I am a sucker for intentional poetry.
One theme worth noting is the duality expressed in the poems. Mottram constantly used diction like “halve,” "halved,” “two selves,” "dividing,” and others. I feel they tie everything together given the context and the kind of life she lived, constantly wanting to be of a different life, or sometimes being different selves of herself.
Also, the addition of old pictures, handwritten letters, pages of court orders, adoption papers, etc. adds a layer of realism to the narrative in the collection.
My only reservation, though, is that it seems some of the forms and styles used in some of the poems appeared forced. They seemed like paragraphs forced into stanzas. I don't know if that was the point or if it was deliberate, but it was glaring to me.
I recommend this collection. However, be aware of some of its triggering themes before you pick it up.
Some of my favourite poems were;
1. Split
2. Lungfish
3. Song
4. Certificate of Irrevocability (I think this poem is a creatively beautiful poem).
5. Birth
6. Matryoshka
7. The goose
8. A picture goes in search of its frame
9. Praxis
10. Letting in the wolves
From her accounts, readers get to see how she navigates all these difficult moments and how those experiences shaped her. And all that is delivered through carefully layered verses.
The book starts with a “timeline,” which provides a solid context of the writer’s life despite being compressed. This prepares the reader for what to expect.
With each poem, Mottram paints a vivid picture with words, capturing the details of her childhood—how it feels to live with people who are not your biological parents, to be in foster homes, to be abused, and to hear about your parent’s overdose.
I enjoyed the use of diverse poetic forms and styles. They felt deliberate, and I am a sucker for intentional poetry.
One theme worth noting is the duality expressed in the poems. Mottram constantly used diction like “halve,” "halved,” “two selves,” "dividing,” and others. I feel they tie everything together given the context and the kind of life she lived, constantly wanting to be of a different life, or sometimes being different selves of herself.
Also, the addition of old pictures, handwritten letters, pages of court orders, adoption papers, etc. adds a layer of realism to the narrative in the collection.
My only reservation, though, is that it seems some of the forms and styles used in some of the poems appeared forced. They seemed like paragraphs forced into stanzas. I don't know if that was the point or if it was deliberate, but it was glaring to me.
I recommend this collection. However, be aware of some of its triggering themes before you pick it up.
Some of my favourite poems were;
1. Split
2. Lungfish
3. Song
4. Certificate of Irrevocability (I think this poem is a creatively beautiful poem).
5. Birth
6. Matryoshka
7. The goose
8. A picture goes in search of its frame
9. Praxis
10. Letting in the wolves
May 15, 2024
Recurrent is one of the most beautiful books I've read in a while. Darla Mottram's autobiographical works open up a host of emotion by bringing us along the timeline of the writer's life.
This collection is enhanced through the use of photos, letters and real-life documents, we are brought into this deeply raw, carefully shared story detailing childhood, assault, addiction and adoption. Honestly, once I started reading, I couldn't stop. Despite the collection being slated for publication, it felt like I was being trusted with and shared with by a friend. The narrative style was enchanting, contemporary but with a classical twist. The writing was incredibly atmospheric and evokes strong imagery, bolstered by the supplementary materials to the poems that have been carefully constructed- each with unique twists, rhythms, and style. Darla's voice shines, which feels doubly important when you embark on the journey of her life. There are several lines that took my breath away, and will stay with me forever.
My favourite poems were 'The Poem Fails' and 'An Extraterrestrial Sleeps in My Closet'.
Thank you Net Galley and Querencia Press for early access to this collection; it is one of those books that felt life saving.
This collection is enhanced through the use of photos, letters and real-life documents, we are brought into this deeply raw, carefully shared story detailing childhood, assault, addiction and adoption. Honestly, once I started reading, I couldn't stop. Despite the collection being slated for publication, it felt like I was being trusted with and shared with by a friend. The narrative style was enchanting, contemporary but with a classical twist. The writing was incredibly atmospheric and evokes strong imagery, bolstered by the supplementary materials to the poems that have been carefully constructed- each with unique twists, rhythms, and style. Darla's voice shines, which feels doubly important when you embark on the journey of her life. There are several lines that took my breath away, and will stay with me forever.
My favourite poems were 'The Poem Fails' and 'An Extraterrestrial Sleeps in My Closet'.
Thank you Net Galley and Querencia Press for early access to this collection; it is one of those books that felt life saving.
June 17, 2024
Publishing date: 24.05.2024
Thank you to NetGalley and Querencia Press for the ARC. My opinions are my own.
The book as a meal: Not a meal, a wake-up call
The book left me: Worrying
Negatives:
Some strange formatting
Positives:
Good flow in the poems
Features:
Trauma as art, multi-media, heartbreaking story across generations
Why did I choose this one?
More poems! I also wanted to dip my toes into some biography as I haven't really tried it out before
Pick-up-able? Put-down-able?
Pick-up-able. I had to take a few breaks between poems here and there, but that was simply becasue the matierial was so "heavy"
What was the vibe and mood?
A little court case, a little bit of those "documentaries" you can find on netflix, and a lot like uncovering family trauma at a kids birthday party
Final ranking and star rating?
B tier, 4 stars. This got me feeling a lot of different thing. Angry, sad, happy ... And this is a good biography told in a little bit of a different format than usual. I think I would read more of them if this was the norm
Favorite poems:
MYTHOLOGY
THE POEM FAILS
RECURRING NIGHTMARE
THE GOOSE
Thank you to NetGalley and Querencia Press for the ARC. My opinions are my own.
The book as a meal: Not a meal, a wake-up call
The book left me: Worrying
Negatives:
Some strange formatting
Positives:
Good flow in the poems
Features:
Trauma as art, multi-media, heartbreaking story across generations
Why did I choose this one?
More poems! I also wanted to dip my toes into some biography as I haven't really tried it out before
Pick-up-able? Put-down-able?
Pick-up-able. I had to take a few breaks between poems here and there, but that was simply becasue the matierial was so "heavy"
What was the vibe and mood?
A little court case, a little bit of those "documentaries" you can find on netflix, and a lot like uncovering family trauma at a kids birthday party
Final ranking and star rating?
B tier, 4 stars. This got me feeling a lot of different thing. Angry, sad, happy ... And this is a good biography told in a little bit of a different format than usual. I think I would read more of them if this was the norm
Favorite poems:
MYTHOLOGY
THE POEM FAILS
RECURRING NIGHTMARE
THE GOOSE
May 27, 2024
This is a brilliant collection of poetry by Darla Mottram. One that I highly recommend reading for anyone who would like to see a prime example of turning pain and trauma into art.
Mottram writes so beautifully, you can feel every emotion she felt as she wrote. She pulls no punches, the subject matter is heavy and dark (so be mindful of your own triggers) but it’s so real and confronting.
Respectfully, Darla Mottram seems like the type of person who does not need nor want pity from her experiences and I think thats really admirable and something I look up to. She is super open about her life, including photos, letters and documents into this book. For me it enhanced the experience and was a smart creative decision.
I usually end off my reviews of poetry collections with my favourite poems but I cannot get over the poem that this book is named after. So i’ll leave you with one holy grail of a poem:
Recurrent
Thank you NetGalley for this e-arc.
Mottram writes so beautifully, you can feel every emotion she felt as she wrote. She pulls no punches, the subject matter is heavy and dark (so be mindful of your own triggers) but it’s so real and confronting.
Respectfully, Darla Mottram seems like the type of person who does not need nor want pity from her experiences and I think thats really admirable and something I look up to. She is super open about her life, including photos, letters and documents into this book. For me it enhanced the experience and was a smart creative decision.
I usually end off my reviews of poetry collections with my favourite poems but I cannot get over the poem that this book is named after. So i’ll leave you with one holy grail of a poem:
Recurrent
Thank you NetGalley for this e-arc.
May 6, 2024
"I keep thinking of how pain is bearable, but pretending isn't"
"I keep thinking there is no center to who I am, that I swirl around an emptiness. / I keep thinking about how I needed books to tell me who I was."
"I keep thinking of statistics regarding adopted children & foster care survivors, children of drug addicts / & sexual abuse, of poverty & neglect."
More in depth review hopefully to follow at a later date, but for now I will say that this book was just delivered to my doorstep a few hours ago and I tore through it with such fervor and so many tears of recognition. The care and attention of the collection especially and how intimately it communicates with the reader has me in absolute awe. I can't wait to read it again.
"I keep thinking there is no center to who I am, that I swirl around an emptiness. / I keep thinking about how I needed books to tell me who I was."
"I keep thinking of statistics regarding adopted children & foster care survivors, children of drug addicts / & sexual abuse, of poverty & neglect."
More in depth review hopefully to follow at a later date, but for now I will say that this book was just delivered to my doorstep a few hours ago and I tore through it with such fervor and so many tears of recognition. The care and attention of the collection especially and how intimately it communicates with the reader has me in absolute awe. I can't wait to read it again.
April 27, 2024
Recurrent by Darla Mottram is a heavy collection of poems about Darla’s own life and trauma. She gives insights into her history and a brief timeline of her time in and out of foster care, then into processing everything that was very much out of her control.
She is raw and real in these poems and once I started reading them I couldn’t stop. A few of my favorites are “Apple Falls From Tree”, “The Goose”, and “The Poem Fails”. She paints a beautiful and heartbreaking picture of the reality so many children face and will pull at every ounce of empathy you have. Well done, would love to add this to my bookshelf!
She is raw and real in these poems and once I started reading them I couldn’t stop. A few of my favorites are “Apple Falls From Tree”, “The Goose”, and “The Poem Fails”. She paints a beautiful and heartbreaking picture of the reality so many children face and will pull at every ounce of empathy you have. Well done, would love to add this to my bookshelf!
May 24, 2024
"a song not wanting to be sung; a song, nevertheless."
it only took reading a few poems to know this book would be 5 stars from me. favourites, just to name a small, small few: i remember, song, a pattern must be established for variation to occur, apple falls from tree, selves. a truly powerful and emotionally raw read.
it only took reading a few poems to know this book would be 5 stars from me. favourites, just to name a small, small few: i remember, song, a pattern must be established for variation to occur, apple falls from tree, selves. a truly powerful and emotionally raw read.
August 1, 2024
This book grabbed me: out of trauma and loneliness, Mottram has created a work of insight, beauty, and humanity. —Michele Glazer
This was such a beautiful and dark collection of poems that cover Darla’s life and experienced traumas. It definitely brought up some of feels as I read through each one.
5 / 5 ⭐️
Read 06.06.2024
Thanks NetGalley for the advanced copy!!
This was such a beautiful and dark collection of poems that cover Darla’s life and experienced traumas. It definitely brought up some of feels as I read through each one.
5 / 5 ⭐️
Read 06.06.2024
Thanks NetGalley for the advanced copy!!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews