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Meanwhile
This is a book about being trapped in the Meanwhile. Walking through seemingly perpetual journeys between borders, genders, nationalities and social status. As a product of mixing races, yet not mixed race. Inhabiting a large body of before with no clear sense of an after. Set to a time of one’s own, decades lost and found in the way, at the mercy of socio-political circumstances, legal procedures and test results. Cyclically prone to fail and start again.
These poems are inspired by liminality and rites of passage we cannot come back from. They look at the new millennium, where the rituals of adulthood, of becoming, of making sense as a role model citizen and perceived pillar of society, are based on capitalist milestones of maturity and self-realisation which seem impossible to those stuck in the Meanwhile.
These respectability parameters are the ones accepted for those who are locked within the narrative of ‘the outstanding migrant’, ‘the successful queer’, ‘the child prodigy’, ‘the perfect body’ and ‘the beautiful mind’; as if the only way to escape judgement and earn dignity as human beings within the margins is to fit into the media and government-approved stories of acceptance and assimilation at the right time, place and age.
Through these pages, we embrace the Meanwhile, and we embrace ourselves to get ready for whatever comes next.
“Cynthia has a profoundly distinct voice which, coupled with their razor-sharp insightful view of the world has created a beautiful, heart breaking and hilarious collection of poetry. Cynthia takes no prisoners in this dissection of what it means to be 'other', to not feel that you quite fit in one world or another but fall between the cracks and they explore that in all its rich and undiscovered imagery. This collection really is a very special thing.”
Jess Green
"Cynthia Rodríguez unflinchingly turns a mirror to self, to Britain, what it means to be a migrant, a citizen. Fearful and fearless."
Dean Atta
"Following in the Latin American tradition but (dis)placed in contemporary Britain, Cynthia Rodríguez cleverly blurs the lines between playful kitsch, deadpan humour and lightning flashes of poetic revelation."
Juana Ádcock
"In this confident and important debut, Rodríguez draws on heritage, culture and politics to sing a ‘Girl Electric’ – reframing and reclaiming a range of often marginalised experiences – to devastating, triumphant and compelling effect."
Lydia Towsey
These poems are inspired by liminality and rites of passage we cannot come back from. They look at the new millennium, where the rituals of adulthood, of becoming, of making sense as a role model citizen and perceived pillar of society, are based on capitalist milestones of maturity and self-realisation which seem impossible to those stuck in the Meanwhile.
These respectability parameters are the ones accepted for those who are locked within the narrative of ‘the outstanding migrant’, ‘the successful queer’, ‘the child prodigy’, ‘the perfect body’ and ‘the beautiful mind’; as if the only way to escape judgement and earn dignity as human beings within the margins is to fit into the media and government-approved stories of acceptance and assimilation at the right time, place and age.
Through these pages, we embrace the Meanwhile, and we embrace ourselves to get ready for whatever comes next.
“Cynthia has a profoundly distinct voice which, coupled with their razor-sharp insightful view of the world has created a beautiful, heart breaking and hilarious collection of poetry. Cynthia takes no prisoners in this dissection of what it means to be 'other', to not feel that you quite fit in one world or another but fall between the cracks and they explore that in all its rich and undiscovered imagery. This collection really is a very special thing.”
Jess Green
"Cynthia Rodríguez unflinchingly turns a mirror to self, to Britain, what it means to be a migrant, a citizen. Fearful and fearless."
Dean Atta
"Following in the Latin American tradition but (dis)placed in contemporary Britain, Cynthia Rodríguez cleverly blurs the lines between playful kitsch, deadpan humour and lightning flashes of poetic revelation."
Juana Ádcock
"In this confident and important debut, Rodríguez draws on heritage, culture and politics to sing a ‘Girl Electric’ – reframing and reclaiming a range of often marginalised experiences – to devastating, triumphant and compelling effect."
Lydia Towsey
- GenresPoetry
76 pages, Paperback
Published October 8, 2020
50 people want to read
About the author
Cynthia Rodríguez
2 books18 followersMexican-British writer and performer, constantly experimenting with the possibilities of spoken word. Using poetry to convey her interests in pop culture, cultural and countercultural shock, mental health, rites of life and passage, and self-preservation.
Based in Monterrey and Leicester, frequenter of open mic events worldwide. Mouthy Poets alum. Part of the De Montfort University team at UniSlam 2019.
As a spoken word performer, she has opened for renowned artists such as Lydia Towsey, Caroline Bird, Hannah Swings, Lauren John Joseph and Jamie Thrasivoulou. She has also been published on zines such as The Black Flamingo Zine edited by Dean Atta and Ben Connors in association with Tate Britain. Two of her poems were featured in Welcome to Leicester, anthology edited by Emma Lee and Ambrose Musiyiwa for Dahlia Publishing.
Her debut poetry collection, Meanwhile, was released in October 2020, via Burning Eye Books.
Based in Monterrey and Leicester, frequenter of open mic events worldwide. Mouthy Poets alum. Part of the De Montfort University team at UniSlam 2019.
As a spoken word performer, she has opened for renowned artists such as Lydia Towsey, Caroline Bird, Hannah Swings, Lauren John Joseph and Jamie Thrasivoulou. She has also been published on zines such as The Black Flamingo Zine edited by Dean Atta and Ben Connors in association with Tate Britain. Two of her poems were featured in Welcome to Leicester, anthology edited by Emma Lee and Ambrose Musiyiwa for Dahlia Publishing.
Her debut poetry collection, Meanwhile, was released in October 2020, via Burning Eye Books.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 11, 2021
This is an outstanding collection by an excellent poet. So much I connected to here, being queer and a migrant myself, each of these poems is an anthem, I loved the poems about childhood and mental health especially, they hit me so deeply. Cannot wait to read what this poet writes next! ❤️
October 1, 2020
It's alright, innit.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews