More Fiya: A New Collection of Black British Poetry

by Kayo Chingonyi (Editor)

The Sunday Times - 5 Best Poetry Books of 2022
In this blistering anthology, poet, editor and DJ Kayo Chingonyi brings together a selection of exceptional Black British poets. This is his dream mixtape featuring a cross-generational span of current poets extending and inhabiting the spirits of the ancestors. Following in the tread of Lemn Sissay's The Fire People, More Fiya aims to lodge in the mind of its readers for a lifetime, radiating to touch the lives of many.

Including work Jason Allen-Paisant, Raymond Antrobus, Malika Booker, Eric Ngalle Charles, Dzifa Benson, Inua Ellams, Samatar Elmi, Khadijah Ibrahim, Keith Jarrett, Anthony Joseph, Safiya Kinshasa Kamara, Vanessa Kisuule, Rachel Long, Adam Lowe, Nick Makoha, Karen McCarthy Woolf, Momtaza Mehri, Bridget Minamore, Selina Nwulu, Gboyega Odubanjo, Louisa Adjoa Parker, Roger Robinson, Denise Saul, Kim Squirrel, Warsan Shire, Rommi Smith, Yomi Sode, Degna Stone, Keisha Thompson, Warda Yassin, Belinda Zhawi

Genres: Poetry, Nonfiction

208 pages, Hardcover

Published June 21, 2022

About the author

Kayo Chingonyi is a fellow of the Complete Works programme for diversity and quality in British Poetry and the author of two pamphlets, Some Bright Elegance (Salt, 2012) and The Colour of James Brown’s Scream (Akashic, 2016). His first full-length collection, Kumukanda, was published in June 2017 by Chatto & Windus and went on to win the Dylan Thomas Prize and a Somerset Maugham Award. Kayo has been invited to read from his work at venues and events across the UK and internationally. He was awarded the Geoffrey Dearmer Prize and has completed residencies with Kingston University, Cove Park, First Story, The Nuffield Council on Bioethics, and Royal Holloway University of London in partnership with Counterpoints Arts. He was Associate Poet at the Institute of Contemporary Arts from Autumn 2015 to Spring 2016, Anthony Burgess Fellow at Manchester University in 2018, and co-edited issue 62 of Magma Poetry and the Autumn 2016 edition of The Poetry Review. He is now poetry editor for The White Review. Kayo is also an emcee, producer, and DJ and regularly collaborates with musicians and composers both as a poet and a lyricist.

Reviews

[Carmijn Gerritsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection covers a broad range of experimental Black British pieces of poetry. It covers themes of race, ethnicity, politics, migration, belonging and more. As such, there is a certain diversity and commonality throughout the book which bring them together as a whole. Some poets I liked more than others, however it has given me multiple new authors that I want to support in the future. Additionally, it has provided me with a good basis for my research. I particularly enjoyed the poems by Elmo, Booker, Mehri and Minamore.

[Callum Morris-Horne · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the introduction to this collection, anthologist Kayo Chingoyi writes, poignantly, of the anthology being the main fate of Black poetry; whereby systemic racism in the publishing industry frequently prevents its poets from getting books of their own. Although, for all intents and purposes, this is an ‘anthology’, its editor prefers the term ‘mixtape’; a complication of standout songs which reflect a diverse spectrum of Black British experience. Despite finding this selection to be of varying quality overall, I was impressed by the range of theme tended within its pages; the full spread of different, disparate backgrounds, subjectivities, and voices amplified within effortlessly shrugging of the ‘burden of representation’—the notion that one Black British poet can somehow be representative of the whole of Black British poetry. For these reasons, this ‘mixtape’ is best for sampling the array of contemporary verse available, picking a handful of tracks you like, and seeking out where else you can find their authors’ works.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an amazing anthology - or by the editor's preference, 'mixtape' - of poems by Black British poets. Every poem throughout held their own story with themes ranging from LGBTQ+ love to grief to motherhood to several other personal tales from the individual poet.
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From a young age I've always appreciated poetry in all forms and the poems in More Fiya were no exception. These were unalike any poems I've read in the past which is possibly why I savoured them so much. Although I (expectedly) couldn't personally relate to some, this absolutely doesn't take away from the talent of each poet and the appreciation I had for every word written on each page. I felt I was able to learn something about each poet through their verses which I really enjoyed.
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As much as I cherished every poem in this collection, a few of my favourites that I still can't stop thinking about were The Black Boys in Paradise by Dean Atta, Number 2020 by Keisha Thompson and Walking Home from School by Kim Squirrell.
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Overall, this was a stunning poetry collection from poets that deserve all the recognition they can get and it's definitely made me keen to read more poetry in general, but especially by every writer highlighted in this book.

Thank you to Canongate Books for the paperback ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Aleksandr Popov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eklektiline ja mitmeti kõnetav, nii mõneski riimis, reas, värsis valust ja varjudest nõretav. Ei jää vast peitu tahe olla korraga nii kaasatundev, mässumeelne, avangard kui lahe. Ei ole ealeski nii selge, kuigi olemas on vahe, kas autor tunnetab ja tajub valu, mis ta rahvast räsib, sest neist hulgim toodud inglismanni randa üle mitme mere ja ka lahe.
See teos ei ole mõeldud pelgalt müügiks, ta soov on käigult ületada tabusid ja murda müüre, välja murda müüdiks. Et oleks ilmne, selge ja riskantne. Et oleks sama palju küsimusi kui on relevante.
Nii mõnigi siit leida võib ekstsesse, mis oleks pidand jääma luuletaja meeltesse, ei kaunista need kriitikute arvates poeete, pisendavad suisa poetesse. Kuis saadagu siis kiirelt vastu vahtimist ja paugust, on ilmne, suisa selge, et see kõik vaid haugub!
Sest olla oma aja tunnistajaks, ei ole teps nii lihtne. Su rahvas siiani ju tunneb valu, pitsitavaid orjuspihte. Ja ikka oled oma enda kodus võõras, sest pärined ju teisest kandist, oled esindamas ajalugu tõbrast.
See siin ei ole kindlasti ei selgitus, ei kiituskiri. See pisku mõtteid, mis on valdamas va nipitiri. Kes raamatute keskel olla tahtis äss, nüüd luule loetud, ajusoppides on mäss!

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I could get a handle on whether I actually like poetry or not because I seem to become more confused every time I read a new collection or poets work. But I can say for definite that I absolutely loved this collection and am so glad I was able to get this out of my local library.

This is a collection of poems by different Black British poets, who despite their various upbringings and backgrounds, all have important points to make about being Black in Britain today. As well as showing the diverse and deep history that their diasporas have with callbacks to countries that they no longer belong to and communities that they are now unable to fully engage with. This collection was beautiful and heartbreaking and I don’t think there was a single poem that I didn’t enjoy reading.

If I had to highlight a couple of the ones that I loved the most, I would say; “Two Black Boys in Paradise”, “On Freezing a Dead Son”, “As If”, and “Walking Home from School” were my particular favourites.

[Lucsbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book, another night in which I only went to sleep after I finished it. I really enjoyed most of the poems and how different they were from most of what I was used to reading in school. I found it particularly easy to identify with most of the female poets and really enjoyed the poems relating to motherhood, fatherhood and gender the most. I finished this book wanting more and I'm certain I'm not alone in that.

Thank you to Canongate for kindly sending me a copy.

[S P · Rating 3 out of 5]

'These anthologies, in other words, complicate the idea of a stable audience for poetry by extending the poetic notion of what it's like to be in the world and, as well, what it is like to be in the world in a black skin.'

(from 'Introduction', p4)

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Day 9 of the Sealey Challenge 2023: I really enjoyed this collection with some new names to me and some old favourites. A good mix of emotions and images, and I liked the reference to Nicola Sealey while I am doing the Sealey Challenge!

[Michelle McGrane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Day Three Choice

The Sealey Challenge 2022 (Poetry)

[Stephanie Dargusch Borders · Rating 4 out of 5]

Varied collection with many contributors. Enjoyable.

[Judith Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grateful for the introduction to many poets.

[art · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of black British poetry. Focused on the diversity of cultures, backgrounds, voices and perspectives from different poets. It’s about identity, class, gender, sexuality and race. But with themes of love, grief and motherhood. This anthology celebrates black heritage by voicing their shared experience whilst exploring the rich and beautiful customs. Both beautiful and heartbreaking. It is a reflection of the personal experiences, history and struggles of what it is like to be a black person in Britain whist also celebrating the black heritage and cultures.