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Blue Bird
Blue Bird is Canadian storyteller Magda Ayuk's debut collection of poetry and prose. Blue Bird is the necessary and enduring journey of self-love. Ayuk explores this journey through the intersectional pulses of freedom, race and gender. Blue Bird is the gentle reminder that we are all light beings, and deserve the peace we seek. Blue Bird is warmed by Ayuk's Cameroonian roots, which drip magic on every page.
- GenresPoetry
242 pages, Paperback
Published August 30, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 6, 2018
I read it a while ago (well, quite a while ago) and I’m really sorry for the late review. But better late than never.
to everyone needing all of the above but who cannot yet put
that longing into words
this is for you
This was very profound. It covered mostly racial inequalities, colour, gender, and love. What I love most about it is that it makes you proud about your scars and weaknesses. It helps you accept yourself. Tells you that the world may not understand the struggle and the pain you go through every day but it doesn’t really matter. Only you matter.
I recommend you give it a try!
Some of my favs:
what a wonder!
to be whole
&
in pieces
at the same
time
ruins
you know exactly the beats that make you dance
& the chords that make you sing
why are you choosing silence?
go for it
i jumped
both feet inside the pond
while you swirled your toes around
afraid of being frozen
or bitten by things you could not see
live
you picked me up
rolled me into a ball
& dipped me into piping hot stew
i hated the part of me that feigned smiles
as she sweated
abuse
happiness does not
always
come easy
it’s the saddest truth
just leave the door cracked open
so she can two-step her way in
when you’re ready
happy
betrayal is when your lips part, but the truth gets trapped under
your tongue
lies
like a bird with broken wing mended now in flight
an eager child’s burnt tongue minutes later savoring food
you too can be restored
grateful for second chances
words become houseguests you can’t get rid off
choose them carefully
ghosts exist
they dwell on your lips
in the form of bonds broken
promises
do not let memories grow arms & legs & trap you in a loop
control
i watched a child kill a butterfly
& some parallel universe
was drained of all its color
rip
sometimes, i have this urge to kiss something, someone, anything
lovers aren’t always nearby
so i kiss my knee
or the back of my hand
i know that sounds absurd
but kisses aren’t only for that which is outside of your being
you’re deserving of your own affection
kiss yourself
i give myself a day to bathe in sadness
sadness can be cleansing too
clean
your mind is your home
don’t treat it like an attic
out with the old, in with the new
some girls are used as soldiers
some boys are used as sex slaves
they exist
we can’t live our lives pretending they don’t
out of sight
June 25, 2018
Let me first share some of my best moments while reading this poetry collection
1.
first thing i’ll be to a strange man with whom i disagree
is a whore
male fragility
2.
i hear waves when he walks by
he carries the ocean in his chest
“why doesn’t it rain where you live?” i ask him
“all your flowers are dead”
he says, “exhaling tornadoes is more my forte”
why don’t you cry?
3.
she tells you your dick is small
& half your self-worth
melts on the floor in a puddle
more
4.
my grandma doesn’t play the trumpet but when she laughs
i march to the sound of grinding stones
5.
beauty is the scent between your thighs the constellation of dots that form your earliest scar the warmth of your breasts
the sway of your hips
the way you toss off your shoes
to feel the earth with your feet
all you
6.
what i feel is hard to explain
just imagine
running to & fro
while having roots
that feed you
without holding you in place
root
7.
a bird will shit on your head. it’s flying above you, & it cares little about what is going on below. you need to take flight. shut off your brain for a second. birds don’t have much of one anyway.
just fly.
trust your gut
Recently I have been reading and adoring poetry and I picked this book (blue bird by Magda Ayuk, a Canadian writer of Cameroonian descent) after reading Crush by Richard Siken with I loved.
So in short this collection which contains more than 200 poems, speaks about feminism, female body, racism, freedom and spirituality. All the poems are very simple and to-the-point or we can say “ written in the tradition of Rupi Kaur”. Its refreshing and empowering. The starting poems were ok but as it proceed it became remarkable and astounding. Though majority of the poems stuck to me like a thunderbolt and there were poems that made me roll my eyes ( they were too cliched ). It is a lovely collection.
One thing that I really admire was how it handled the subject of racism.
For example:
so far, i’ve lived abroad in two countries. &, black woman, no one is as exoticized as we are. our hair, our skin & even the way we smell is otherized. we are the closest thing to alien man has seen. this is how i know that if aliens existed, man would try to destroy them, take their land, put a price on them & exhibit them for all to see
I would highly recommend this collection to the readers who enjoyed Rupi Kaur’s Milk and Honey.
1.
first thing i’ll be to a strange man with whom i disagree
is a whore
male fragility
2.
i hear waves when he walks by
he carries the ocean in his chest
“why doesn’t it rain where you live?” i ask him
“all your flowers are dead”
he says, “exhaling tornadoes is more my forte”
why don’t you cry?
3.
she tells you your dick is small
& half your self-worth
melts on the floor in a puddle
more
4.
my grandma doesn’t play the trumpet but when she laughs
i march to the sound of grinding stones
5.
beauty is the scent between your thighs the constellation of dots that form your earliest scar the warmth of your breasts
the sway of your hips
the way you toss off your shoes
to feel the earth with your feet
all you
6.
what i feel is hard to explain
just imagine
running to & fro
while having roots
that feed you
without holding you in place
root
7.
a bird will shit on your head. it’s flying above you, & it cares little about what is going on below. you need to take flight. shut off your brain for a second. birds don’t have much of one anyway.
just fly.
trust your gut
Recently I have been reading and adoring poetry and I picked this book (blue bird by Magda Ayuk, a Canadian writer of Cameroonian descent) after reading Crush by Richard Siken with I loved.
So in short this collection which contains more than 200 poems, speaks about feminism, female body, racism, freedom and spirituality. All the poems are very simple and to-the-point or we can say “ written in the tradition of Rupi Kaur”. Its refreshing and empowering. The starting poems were ok but as it proceed it became remarkable and astounding. Though majority of the poems stuck to me like a thunderbolt and there were poems that made me roll my eyes ( they were too cliched ). It is a lovely collection.
One thing that I really admire was how it handled the subject of racism.
For example:
so far, i’ve lived abroad in two countries. &, black woman, no one is as exoticized as we are. our hair, our skin & even the way we smell is otherized. we are the closest thing to alien man has seen. this is how i know that if aliens existed, man would try to destroy them, take their land, put a price on them & exhibit them for all to see
I would highly recommend this collection to the readers who enjoyed Rupi Kaur’s Milk and Honey.
March 24, 2018
Please explain to me how these single lines with just barely commendable statements are poems.
-I would have liked it if the author combined all the statements and made something bigger, richer and deeper out of them.
I guess more on why I didn’t like this poetry, or not-poetry, was that it was too thin. The sentences and statements stopped in and with themselves. There was no searching, digging deeper, they were like deep-ish? statuses for a social media platform, maybe twitter. But I do see the potential in which this author could build and construct more and in-depth essays and articles on her thoughts. Even longer things that could be called poetry. But this wasn’t poetry. This didn’t have metaphor and this didn’t have realization underneath the lullaby of language. This was laziness and don’t call that poetry.
-I would have liked it if the author combined all the statements and made something bigger, richer and deeper out of them.
I guess more on why I didn’t like this poetry, or not-poetry, was that it was too thin. The sentences and statements stopped in and with themselves. There was no searching, digging deeper, they were like deep-ish? statuses for a social media platform, maybe twitter. But I do see the potential in which this author could build and construct more and in-depth essays and articles on her thoughts. Even longer things that could be called poetry. But this wasn’t poetry. This didn’t have metaphor and this didn’t have realization underneath the lullaby of language. This was laziness and don’t call that poetry.
April 9, 2018
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This collection is filled with exactly the kind of poetry I love. It doesn’t adhere to specific rules and can tell a story in a single line.
I think the ebook could have been formatted better, but maybe that's just how the review copy is.
I think the ebook could have been formatted better, but maybe that's just how the review copy is.
April 16, 2018
I received this book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review :3
Some might argue that books like this are plainly journal entries and not poems, and I tend to agree, usually. I used the same argument when I read Rupi Kaur's Milk and Honey and urged people not to buy that book. This book also has the same type of short excerpts-from-the-authors-diary sort of poems, but it is different from Kaur's works in a few ways.
Magda Ayuk's poems exude a wave of positivity and pride. She writes about wearing her melanin skin with pride. About loving herself first. About being a woman. About her heritage and ancestry.
I found her poems to radiate a wholesomeness that I haven't come across in other such poems
While longer forms of poetry are more of my thing, I was so in love with the poems in this book that the review copy on my kindle is now mostly highlighted.
And my most favorite one with the most positive message of all
Magda Ayuk could indeed have connected the poems a little and have made them a little longer, but I like them just the same.
Even if you do not like short poetry, I urge you to read this book if only for the message it conveys.
Some might argue that books like this are plainly journal entries and not poems, and I tend to agree, usually. I used the same argument when I read Rupi Kaur's Milk and Honey and urged people not to buy that book. This book also has the same type of short excerpts-from-the-authors-diary sort of poems, but it is different from Kaur's works in a few ways.
Magda Ayuk's poems exude a wave of positivity and pride. She writes about wearing her melanin skin with pride. About loving herself first. About being a woman. About her heritage and ancestry.
you tell him to dump bags of salt over my wounds
you tell him that i deserve it
that i am lesser
then you go home to your daughter
ask her how her day went
& tuck her in
in case you think i materialized out of thin air i'll remind you
i'm a daughter too
geese & ganders
I found her poems to radiate a wholesomeness that I haven't come across in other such poems
if i had bigger hands
if i had superhuman strength
if you'd let me
i'd pick you up
& throw you into a sea of happiness
& i'd let you drown in it
be happy
While longer forms of poetry are more of my thing, I was so in love with the poems in this book that the review copy on my kindle is now mostly highlighted.
we are not the same
but there doesn't need to be a hierarchy
society
how do cells in your body react to anger?
do they stew as you marinate on your triggers?
they feel it you know
this anger that took flight in your spirit has now migrated to your bones
deep
And my most favorite one with the most positive message of all
just imagine spending 40 weeks building something magical, feeding it the right things & feeling it move inside you. imagine having birth pangs strap you to a bed for 24 hours as you pray that it comes out healthy & strong. imagine that something magical was you. not a miniature version of you, but you. treat yourself & take care of yourself like you are your own child.
you first
Magda Ayuk could indeed have connected the poems a little and have made them a little longer, but I like them just the same.
Even if you do not like short poetry, I urge you to read this book if only for the message it conveys.
April 11, 2018
Magda Ayuk's collection Blue Bird is poetry that explores the self--how we love ourselves, hate ourselves, and how this impacts relationships outside of ourselves. The collection contains many shorter pieces, some only a line or two.
What stood out about this collection is the repetition of images. Two images that kept resurfacing was fingers (what was on fingers, what was being licked off of fingers) and food. These images appeared in wildly different ways, which was interesting to see, but the repetition did become a little flat by the end of the collection.
Overall, the collection was an interesting read, but it definitely could have been more.
*Book provided by NetGalley
What stood out about this collection is the repetition of images. Two images that kept resurfacing was fingers (what was on fingers, what was being licked off of fingers) and food. These images appeared in wildly different ways, which was interesting to see, but the repetition did become a little flat by the end of the collection.
Overall, the collection was an interesting read, but it definitely could have been more.
*Book provided by NetGalley
April 18, 2018
Amazing storytelling for the modern day. The poems are witty, relatable. A bit short if you like longer poetry. Awesome quick and insightful read.
Fav poem wild,embodies strong women and how society relates to them.
Fav poem wild,embodies strong women and how society relates to them.
April 24, 2018
Beautiful wording. Full review to come soon
January 8, 2019
I finished this a while back, but I really liked the way she used words. certain things kept with me for a long while. a definite recommendation
October 1, 2020
The beautiful woman on the book cover was what initially grabbed my attention. Unfortunately, I did not love Blue Bird as much as I hoped to. I actually have a lot of mixed feelings about the collection, which is largely due to the inconsistency in writing and quality. There were a number of poems that really spoke to me and that allowed me to contemplate existing issues, but there were also a handful of pieces that came off as odd or sloppy writing.
What I appreciated the most about Blue Bird was that it is a loud, no-holds-barred celebration of diversity, especially for black women. It is blunt, raw, and unapologetic. Magda Ayuk writes about not only feeling comfortable in her own skin, but also, and perhaps more importantly, being proud of her heritage. She also writes about self-image, self-love, and numerous introspective topics with defiance, fierceness, and sincerity. In addition to this, this book touched on sensitive yet extremely important topics, such as racism and systemic oppression, although it is more greatly inspired by lighter themes, such as positivity, freedom, and acceptance.
My problems with Blue Bird mainly involved writing technicalities (e.g. style, structure, use of language), lacking poetic devices, and a couple of inconsistencies. Despite this, I believe that a number of people would be able to really identify with Magda Ayuk’s pieces, and on a larger note, her journey as a black woman. Her voice as a poet is refreshingly quirky, unapologetically blunt, and noticeably modern. She exhibits a ton of potential as a poet, and I can only hope that her succeeding poetry books will be more enjoyable.
Disclosure: I received a digital copy of Blue Bird from the author (via NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to Magda Ayuk!
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What I appreciated the most about Blue Bird was that it is a loud, no-holds-barred celebration of diversity, especially for black women. It is blunt, raw, and unapologetic. Magda Ayuk writes about not only feeling comfortable in her own skin, but also, and perhaps more importantly, being proud of her heritage. She also writes about self-image, self-love, and numerous introspective topics with defiance, fierceness, and sincerity. In addition to this, this book touched on sensitive yet extremely important topics, such as racism and systemic oppression, although it is more greatly inspired by lighter themes, such as positivity, freedom, and acceptance.
My problems with Blue Bird mainly involved writing technicalities (e.g. style, structure, use of language), lacking poetic devices, and a couple of inconsistencies. Despite this, I believe that a number of people would be able to really identify with Magda Ayuk’s pieces, and on a larger note, her journey as a black woman. Her voice as a poet is refreshingly quirky, unapologetically blunt, and noticeably modern. She exhibits a ton of potential as a poet, and I can only hope that her succeeding poetry books will be more enjoyable.
Disclosure: I received a digital copy of Blue Bird from the author (via NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to Magda Ayuk!
🌻🍃 More bookish content on Shut up, Shealea 🍃🌻
instagram • pinterest • twitter
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews