Sweet Nothing

by Kazim Ali

A new collection of essays, poems, and plays by award-winning poet Kazim Ali. In SWEET NOTHING Kazim Ali finds, just beneath the details of daily life, the presence of spiritual reality. A corner of the street, a gesture of the hand, the pattern on a rug, all act as evidence of a generative emptiness. Sweet Nothing documents those details in a language of charmed engagement, and claims language, whether prayer, monologue, or poem, as our most prized of veils over the abyss, as the beauty that grows from sweet nothing and the technique of linking one life with another. Ali's passionate attention explores the lyric truth of being alive, moment by moment. Literary Nonfiction. Essay. Poetry. Drama. LGBTQ+ Studies.

76 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Kazim Ali was born in the United Kingdom and has lived transnationally in the United States, Canada, India, France, and the Middle East. His books encompass multiple genres, includingthe volumes of poetry Inquisition, Sky Ward, winner of the Ohioana Book Award in Poetry; The Far Mosque, winner of Alice James Books’ New England/New York Award; The Fortieth Day; All One’s Blue; and the cross-genre texts Bright Felon and Wind Instrument. His novels include the recently published The Secret Room: A String Quartet and among his books of essays are the hybrid memoir Silver Road: Essays, Maps & Calligraphies and Fasting for Ramadan: Notes from a Spiritual Practice. He is also an accomplished translator (of Marguerite Duras, Sohrab Sepehri, Ananda Devi, Mahmoud Chokrollahi and others) and an editor of several anthologies and books of criticism. After a career in public policy and organizing, Ali taught at various colleges and universities, including Oberlin College, Davidson College, St. Mary's College of California, and Naropa University. He is currently a Professor of Literature at the University of California, San Diego. His newest books are a volume of three long poems entitled The Voice of Sheila Chandra and a memoir of his Canadian childhood, Northern Light.

Author photo by Tanya Rosen-Jones from Kazim Ali's press kit.

Reviews

[Elizabeth King · Rating 5 out of 5]

such a cool concept for a book, i loved the memoir section and i’ve never read one with tiny plays in it which were surprisingly moving! my friend brought this home from a book event in minneapolis and i literally read it in one sitting just eating it up. will def check out the author (even though they hurt my heart) !

[Beatrice]

A calming read after an unsettling day, not because it was comforting, but because each word was placed with care to provoke the response it wanted. I felt in good hands.