Spooks

by Stella Yin-Yin Wong

Stella Wong’s debut book of poems playfully subverts and willfully challenges any notions we might have about Asian Americanness and its niceties. While her previous chapbook stunned her admirers and adherents into an almost fawning incredulity, this outing eviscerates. More like getting struck with Chinese stars right between the eyes. TKO with a mean left hook to boot. And if you manage to get back up on your feet again, if your dare dance around in the haunted ring that American poetry is, be certain that this most un-model minority bard will teach you not to ever read the same way again. Or as Danez Smith has “Stella Wong wields the kind of weaponry I live to be slayed by. Funny as hell, delightfully strange and full of a sneaky and giant heart, this book will knock the windows of your heart not just open, but out the frame once you see how far Wong can dive into fear and the terrible possibles of humanness can still carry back something like hope, gooder than joy.”

Genres: Poetry

96 pages, Paperback

Published March 15, 2022

Reviews

[el]

so much of what i usually love in writing (alliteration, assonance/internal rhyming, homophones, word play, etc.) gone so horribly wrong here……..

[Anna]

Maybe this type of internet-inflected poetry is not for me...

[Ali]

"and by them, I mean all of them
baby jesuses I stole from target."

Picked this up at the bookstore solely because of its use of The Muse's Revenge as cover art. It was an enjoyable read, but I didn't find a lot of new ideas in its pages — not that that's always a requirement, but it wasn't like it was reframing older ideas in a way I found particularly new and fresh either. I did particularly enjoy "Go Big or Go Home", "Oregon 1945", "Outside Party Lines", "Quid Pro Nil", and "Halloween Redux", and found Wong's work was often best when she leaned into humor and unexpected wordplay.

[Paulina ෂ]

Creo que esta es una señal para que deje descansar a la poesía por un rato.

El haber encontrado una serie de poemas increíbles y después (con la expectativa al tope) buscar sin resultado alguno como en este caso, me está fastidiando un poco. Quién sabe? Igual y estos poemas no son tan aburridos como me parecieron.

[Daniel]

An incredibly sharp-witted collection of poems. Poignant to the very end

[Robyn]

Notables 2022 #144

[Amelia]

A beautiful collection of poems. This is the first collection in a long time that intrigued me and kept my attention. From the wordplay to the structure, this unique collection is sure to delight.

[Shannon]

There were a few poems that definitely made me feel something. 3 stars because I struggled to understand the way the sounds and words came together.

I would read this poet’s future works.

[emma]

“How magnetic / you are, when you show off / your knees for the first time / forgiven by scars.”

[Erik Brown]

... You tell us how
your doctor trash-talks, frames you

as asexual and crazy and even worse, poor
and we spin a WebMD

diagnosis into fine compliment--
with bi-polar you've taken over

the whole world ...