small white monkeys

by Sophie Collins

small white monkeys is a fragmented essay, including poems and images, on self-expression, self-help and shame. Beginning with the image of the small white monkeys, the text examines the author’s relationship with shame through a series of short studies on, amongst other things, cats, hair as a metonym for the self in poetry and fiction, and perceptions of sexual violence.

Genres: Poetry, Essays, Nonfiction

96 pages, Paperback

First published March 14, 2018

About the author

Sophie Collins grew up in Bergen, North Holland, and now lives in Glasgow. She is the author of Who Is Mary Sue? (Faber, 2018) and small white monkeys (Book Works, 2017), and translator of The Following Scan Will Last Five Minutes by Lieke Marsman (Pavilion, 2019). She is a lecturer at the University of Glasgow. Sophie was shortlisted for the Edwin Morgan Trust Award in 2016.

Reviews

[Rosamund Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

After being injured, Sophie Collins found herself experiencing the emotions related to sexual assault she endured some years prior to this injury. This is a collection of essays exploring the process of coping with those emotions, from the intense physical responses, to meditations on shame and anger. There are some excellent aspects to this book -- Collins draws from a wide range of sources, and her writing is clear, honest and intelligent -- but I did not feel that the book made sense as a coherent whole, and some of the mixed-media aspects (such as found poems, use of photography, aphorisms from self-help books) didn't seem to meld well with the more academic parts. This could have been shortened and made into a long single essay, and that might have made it more focused.

[Oscar Cremmen · Rating 4 out of 5]

terrible front cover, fantastic writing

[Sophie Zwertbroek · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book felt necessary to read. I've spent a lot of time pondering on how I would/could review it, but that feels like the only right way to describe it.

[huda 💋 · Rating 4 out of 5]

small white monkeys talks about trauma and shame in such a refreshing and relatable way.

i like the mix of essays, poetry and theory! good read get on it loves

[Helen McClory · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of those short books you really need to read more than once, over the course of years, to fully absorb.

[Juliano · Rating 4 out of 5]

“A woman who suffers can indeed relieve her suffering by becoming the mind which creates”. Sophie Collins (writer of the brilliant collection of poetry Who Is Mary Sue?) released her first book small white monkeys the year previously; after being out of print for a while, was reissued in 2022 in a beautiful new edition, featuring a new preface by Helen Charman, who considers the “thwarted linearity of trauma” that Collins so expertly gets to the heart of. This lyric essay, blending discursive prose with lyrical fragments and images, arose when Collins sustained a bad physical injury and experienced an “unfreezing” of traumatic memories from a sexual assault years prior. “I found myself in hell. I began writing a long poem in order to manage, though I did not yet recognise the significance of this activity. ‘The Engine’ was a poem about another world. Inhabiting this world was a brood of small white monkeys that moved around like injured birds […] It took me too long to recognise ‘The Engine’ for what it was: the story of my life until now — or quite recently. It took me longer still to recognise the monkeys for what they were, collectively: my white symbol of shame.” Shame is stifled by self-expression, Collins channelling Lisa Robertson’s idea of productive anger: “I feel my own shame hardening into an anger that will power me indefinitely.” She considers the usual staples of trauma, silence, and expression, such as Cassandra, and Artemisia Gentileschi, but manages to recast the familiar parables in new light, boldly, vividly animated. Through her own affirmations and those of other writers, Collins proclaims “I am smaller, uglier, more powerful than before”, a darkly resonant shift in outlook.

[Joanna Ward · Rating 5 out of 5]

CW sexual assault, trauma

Starts off really personal, reflective, and gets more and more engaged with critical and literary theory as it goes. Reflecting on where shame comes from, how it manifests, from an explicitly feminist and personal perspective, incorporating photographs, poems, affirmations and anecdotes as well as more extended prose. Fascinating, moving, illuminating — both whimsical and profound, personal and political. Will truly help me re-think trauma and shame from now on.

Would really especially recommend for fans of Maggie Nelson, Chris Kraus (I Love Dick), Andrea Long Chu (Females) — similar tones and vibes of incorporating philosophical and critical enquiry with personal questions. LOVE

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some sections in this I found really beautiful and powerful. Others I found I had to push myself through like I was forcing myself to read heavy academic text. Overall it’s a short book so well worth the read. I imagine it is one of those pieces that will need to be reread at different points in my life to fully understand it all.

[Bogdana Skorik · Rating 5 out of 5]

an adorable quick read. beautiful language and references through the whole book. it made me think a lot on my traumas and mental instability( it was super relatable cause i work in arts) and realised that for past 4 or 5 years or maybe through my whole lifetime time i was frozen. it’s time to start “unfreezing”.

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Felt very genuine, enjoyed the curation/analysis of readings and artists more than the actual prose and poetry of the author. I liked the ideas about female empowerment, anger, shame and self care. Brief length was apt

[Bee Eze · Rating 4 out of 5]

a wonderful book! so short but heavy with beautiful references + ideas.
something missing for me...perhaps I was expecting a more personal connection w the author that never came, some of the poems did go over my head, too.

[alpolonijus.apikretas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really wonderful read. Though fragmented and certainly in need of reading several times to get to the core of it all, but refreshing. Gentle and rare take on sexual abuse and shame.

[Tomás Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Bea Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

6!

[Harriet Hatwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Actually read the 2nd edition with foreword by Helen Charman) I enjoyed the clarity and thoughtfulness of the writing. Engaging and more accessible than I had imagined it might be.

[Lucy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful collection that twists the knife in a way that hurts but heals on trauma and violence, and refuses to be confined by genre. Very inspiring

[Dove · Rating 5 out of 5]

perfect

[Sofía Frausto · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really simple essays but an interesting and quick read, my favorites were the essays on shame.