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Steel Slides and Yellow Walls
In Steel Slides and Yellow Walls, Alicia Swain navigates the labyrinthine journey women undergo to form their identities. Through a feminist lens and distinctive voice, her collection veraciously portrays the trials that forge women into sagacious, resilient adults. From contemplation of how to balance mental health despite knowing what tribulations are sure to come, to the title poem's exploration of how traumatic memories can continue to haunt in the most unexpected situations, Swain offers a look at the diverse experiences that mold women into the tenacious beings they are.
- GenresPoetry
72 pages, Paperback
Published August 12, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 29, 2025
This poetry collection explores the personal and shared experiences of womanhood through the lens of feminism. Beginning with childhood, Swain exposes the trials young girls face, showing how sexism shapes our experiences and affects how we see the world and how we view ourselves as we grow into womanhood. Separated into sections - Ask, Experience, Recover, Grow - each portion explores different phases of this understanding and reckoning with trauma, similar to the stages of grief.
Rich with metaphor, often illustrated with nature imagery, and anchored by a powerful and uncompromising voice, the reader is taken on a journey that ends with self-kindness and a determination for progress.
Some of my favorite lines:
Anticipation of Conviction: Bruised bodies heal too quickly to make a statement in a court of law, / scars join the conversation too late, / and so, we wait.
Enter Spring: now beckons seductively, a call to return / to the aspen trees, their yellowish-green leaves / dancing between antlers, a contrast / to fur like an aged penny discarded / by a woman who will never need it to get by.
Raised as a Woman: I’m starting to learn how to grow, / not from soil or grassy fields, / but from piles of stone, rocks
Progress: The wood grain swirls, and as the log cracks / from the pressure of the axe, its sweet scent / wafts through the air, a reminder that the death / of one purpose can be as beautiful as a birth.
Rich with metaphor, often illustrated with nature imagery, and anchored by a powerful and uncompromising voice, the reader is taken on a journey that ends with self-kindness and a determination for progress.
Some of my favorite lines:
Anticipation of Conviction: Bruised bodies heal too quickly to make a statement in a court of law, / scars join the conversation too late, / and so, we wait.
Enter Spring: now beckons seductively, a call to return / to the aspen trees, their yellowish-green leaves / dancing between antlers, a contrast / to fur like an aged penny discarded / by a woman who will never need it to get by.
Raised as a Woman: I’m starting to learn how to grow, / not from soil or grassy fields, / but from piles of stone, rocks
Progress: The wood grain swirls, and as the log cracks / from the pressure of the axe, its sweet scent / wafts through the air, a reminder that the death / of one purpose can be as beautiful as a birth.
August 20, 2025
something I love about good poetry is how much feeling it conveys in so few words. thoughtful poets can take a lifetime of experiences and find threads that connect disparate places and events to both tell a story and open readers’ hearts to emotion. Alicia Swain’s debut book of poems is effective, evocative and beautifully written. hard to pick a favorite, but if I were to suggest one poem it would be page 47’s “Raised as Woman” which I keep coming back to and mulling over weeks after reading!
August 22, 2025
This poetry book is incredible. I won it on one of the Goodreads giveaways, and it's already a favorite. If you're ready to have your heart wrenched out and placed back together, try this! It gives feminism, survivor, ptsd warrior vibes. I've never resonated with a poetry book more. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Favorites are: snakeskin❤️, manipulate me😭, door creaks at midnight 💔, and reinvention 💪
Favorites are: snakeskin❤️, manipulate me😭, door creaks at midnight 💔, and reinvention 💪
May 25, 2025
A debut collection of poems about being a woman, mental health, assault, and survival.
from Seen but Not Heard: "How many years can a woman spend projecting her voice / to be heard over men? How many years can a woman spend / asking for help to be saved from them? / How many centuries need to pass to grant safety / when the moon wanes and gifts darkness?"
from Melancholy Sea: "You tear down oak and pine, timber from every forest, / rip planks from arks built for God-fearing men who swore / the ocean would swallow the earth and leave no choice / but to float endlessly through time, waiting for a chance to try again."
from 6 AM: "consider the memories lost / as the wind blows arrogance away / like leaves rustling and cracking / along the concrete, a score / so similar to frail bones forgotten / in mausoleum walls"
from Seen but Not Heard: "How many years can a woman spend projecting her voice / to be heard over men? How many years can a woman spend / asking for help to be saved from them? / How many centuries need to pass to grant safety / when the moon wanes and gifts darkness?"
from Melancholy Sea: "You tear down oak and pine, timber from every forest, / rip planks from arks built for God-fearing men who swore / the ocean would swallow the earth and leave no choice / but to float endlessly through time, waiting for a chance to try again."
from 6 AM: "consider the memories lost / as the wind blows arrogance away / like leaves rustling and cracking / along the concrete, a score / so similar to frail bones forgotten / in mausoleum walls"
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews