Scatterlings

by Zeena Nackerdien

Zeena Nackerdien writes poems using news headlines and pages torn from ordinary life. Blending nature, science, history, fantasy and politics, the result is a unique take on a variety of topics, including the struggles of small business owners, societal expectations of men and women, refugees, butterflies and a patient’s experience of chronic pain. Loosely grouped together into four categories (family, immigration, society, and diseases), the resulting riffs and alliterations depict a world of realities and emotions that are not always black and white.

74 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 6, 2015

About the author

Zeena Nackerdien obtained a Ph.D. degree in Biochemistry from the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa. Zeena has been a research chemist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Maryland and a senior research associate at The Rockefeller University in New York. She is the author of several publications in scientific journals and has also written many books in different genres. As a scientist turned patient advocate and writer, she is intensely interested in building relationships with people from different cultures through story-telling and education. Zeena currently lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Reviews

[Utk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scatterlings is an interesting book where small stories and poetry melt together. The author has the ability to put words on the complex things and make it a bit more tangible, which shows throughtout the book in general and in the 'family chapter' in particular. Both the subjects and the perspectives in the book are relevant and important, and combined with a great language it makes me want to read more things written by Nackerdien (and read Scatterlings once more).

The poems who speeks most to me are ”A Small Business”, ”A Forgotten Ideal” and ”Bitcoins”. ”Two Moms” is one of the most beautiful poems I've read, and I really like how lesbianism is written about in a positive way. I also love the sentence: ”forgiveness is reserved for one who cares” from the poem Happy Mother's Day.

Overall: Scatterlings is very thoughtful and I think it's a great book!