Maybe Something

by Isabela Banzon, Rajeev S. Patke (Preface)

These poems are a study of emotions, a subtle symphonic venturing into the themes of love and loss. If you have been there, this collection is for you.
--Lily Rose Tope

Genres: Poetry

69 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2015

About the author

Born in Manila, grew up in the university town of Los Baños, Laguna and has lived in Quezon City since 1971.

Reviews

[june · Rating 4 out of 5]

"how can we postpone
death by living, by suffering,
by error, by risking, by giving

by losing—until she moves
the cursor elsewhere"

"what is wind and rain

to love become
impossible possession?

the heart
is putrid spectacle;

evacuation could have meant
survival"

"what does it take / to free the heart of memory?" / "what passes / for the possible / is cold infinity—"

"he was dazzling / to the point of meaning"

"... crossing an invisible / equator, we could / give in / to love's"

+ the entirety of brief letter

[Zymon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection is saturated with grief and wistfulness. So much of what’s happening here is death: of a family member, of a friend, of a relationship. At some point I have begun thinking that perhaps the death of a beloved is the death of love. After the death of others we must simply go on, live our lives as we continue to keep them in memory and make occasional quips in order to lighten our burdens. Isabela Banzon puts sadness into words pretty well in this book.

[Paolo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Isabela Banzon's second full collection of poems. It is a lyricism of transgression and tenderness, of generous imagination as the self comes to terms with its displacement in the world.

[A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were a couple poems in here that I really liked, but overall I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. When I woke up in the morning after reading it, I wasn't sure I had finished it because I didn't find it particularly impactful. It might have just been the mood I was in or what time it was when I was reading, which is why I haven't denounced it completely. It might be worth a reread farther down the road, when I'm in a different mood.

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lyrical, humble, spare, personal, painful -- Banzon's poetry reminds me of the lush but austere nature of the Philippines, the inviting and unknowable flow of people against us, the desire for transcendence (and the aching fall back to reality) that so many of us call life. Good stuff.