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Diaries of a Terrorist
Sexy, outspoken, and explosive, the terrorist of Soto’s debut collection resists police violence with linguistic verve and radical honesty.
This debut poetry collection demands the abolition of policing and human caging. In Diaries of a Terrorist, Christopher Soto uses the “we” pronoun to emphasize that police violence happens not only to individuals, but to whole communities. His poetics open the imagination towards possibilities of existence beyond the status quo. Soto asks, “Who do we call terrorist, & why”? These political surrealist poems shift between gut-wrenching vulnerability, laugh-aloud humor, and unapologetic queer punk raunchiness. Diaries of a Terrorist is groundbreaking in its ability to speak—from a local to a global scale—about one of the most important issues of our time.
This debut poetry collection demands the abolition of policing and human caging. In Diaries of a Terrorist, Christopher Soto uses the “we” pronoun to emphasize that police violence happens not only to individuals, but to whole communities. His poetics open the imagination towards possibilities of existence beyond the status quo. Soto asks, “Who do we call terrorist, & why”? These political surrealist poems shift between gut-wrenching vulnerability, laugh-aloud humor, and unapologetic queer punk raunchiness. Diaries of a Terrorist is groundbreaking in its ability to speak—from a local to a global scale—about one of the most important issues of our time.
68 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 3, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
May 7, 2022
Wow! Incredible. Every single poem was an experience. This will be at the top of my list at the end of the year without a doubt. Loved it.
September 19, 2023
// A Beautiful Day in the Psychiatric // Garden (In Memory of Nate)
"Policeman panicked & pulled the trigger // & Poof
The blue black boy beneath moonlight disappeared
Ignored by politicians // & Police without remorse
Again & again // A mountain folds into itself & sighs
It's so American // The constant grieving of violets
Blooming state violence // What's left to say
Anger's the spit we swallowed // For centuries
The sunflowers burned // & Closed their eyes
We counted distance between bullets & our heads
The echo meant // He went to heaven ten blocks away
The freeway's hands // So high above the clouds &
We tried not to jump // What're our wary wings worth
If we wax our feathers // Would shootings cease
If we shaved our brows to sew a coat // Wouldn't
He still be cold"
When quoting poetry in prose, a single slash is meant to show line breaks while a double slash stands for a stanza break. Here, Soto has used the latter as the sole punctuation in his poems where it acts as a chimera, viscerally taking on the roles of periods, commas, colons, dashes. He writes, "Is it writers only // Who obsess over punctuation / The Question mark // So Cute in curiousity / Question // Who do we call terrorist & why". There is also a bodily queer poetics at play here: "Jesus was trans // How the Roman state crucified her in public" Or "We tried not to drown // While swimming backstrokes in rosé & roses". Ultimately it voices the marginalised, juxtaposing local over global. Elsewhere: "We never wanted to harm // Only to stay alive & / We could no longer wait // Wishing strangers would // Help or empathise". But, this isn't the white flag of resignation; it is steady defiance.
(I received a finished copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)
"Policeman panicked & pulled the trigger // & Poof
The blue black boy beneath moonlight disappeared
Ignored by politicians // & Police without remorse
Again & again // A mountain folds into itself & sighs
It's so American // The constant grieving of violets
Blooming state violence // What's left to say
Anger's the spit we swallowed // For centuries
The sunflowers burned // & Closed their eyes
We counted distance between bullets & our heads
The echo meant // He went to heaven ten blocks away
The freeway's hands // So high above the clouds &
We tried not to jump // What're our wary wings worth
If we wax our feathers // Would shootings cease
If we shaved our brows to sew a coat // Wouldn't
He still be cold"
When quoting poetry in prose, a single slash is meant to show line breaks while a double slash stands for a stanza break. Here, Soto has used the latter as the sole punctuation in his poems where it acts as a chimera, viscerally taking on the roles of periods, commas, colons, dashes. He writes, "Is it writers only // Who obsess over punctuation / The Question mark // So Cute in curiousity / Question // Who do we call terrorist & why". There is also a bodily queer poetics at play here: "Jesus was trans // How the Roman state crucified her in public" Or "We tried not to drown // While swimming backstrokes in rosé & roses". Ultimately it voices the marginalised, juxtaposing local over global. Elsewhere: "We never wanted to harm // Only to stay alive & / We could no longer wait // Wishing strangers would // Help or empathise". But, this isn't the white flag of resignation; it is steady defiance.
(I received a finished copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)
February 13, 2023
do not remember starting but opened book app to see i was 75% done ????? my bad my bad i will stop doing shit at 5am
December 21, 2023
Important. Powerful.
October 1, 2023
Such a powerful collection of poems!
October 27, 2023
Very vibrant and interconnected; the throughlines between the author and his poet influences are wonderfully wound about each other and the sceneries of communities lost and found are so vividly portrayed that the grief and joy remains palpable in every poem. I'm not sure if I understood the choice to punctuate with "//" though.
August 9, 2022
Christopher Soto writes in what feels like a sweaty and burning bodily grace and rage. From discussing otherness in identity in the United States to relaying the experience of living in an environment riddled by domestic violence. The porous nature of domestic terror and domestic violence. The shifting of abused and abuser. The realization of what it means to be traumatized and to love and live through it all.
In particular their poem "Two Lovers in Perfect // Synchronicity" - a dedication to Felix Gonzalez- Torres and Ross Laycock is a beautiful and tragic writing about what we lose when our mentors and teachers leave us too early. A reflection of the brilliance of care and relationships while also nodding to the imbalance and unnecessary deaths from the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s. What we leave behind and what we continue to carry forward. A baton gets passed yet not without warnings to heed.
In particular their poem "Two Lovers in Perfect // Synchronicity" - a dedication to Felix Gonzalez- Torres and Ross Laycock is a beautiful and tragic writing about what we lose when our mentors and teachers leave us too early. A reflection of the brilliance of care and relationships while also nodding to the imbalance and unnecessary deaths from the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s. What we leave behind and what we continue to carry forward. A baton gets passed yet not without warnings to heed.
June 16, 2023
Wow, what a collection of personal politics that is demanding of our attention. Soto's work makes the public personal, collectively draws and synthesizes authorial, speaker, and social experiences of contemporary events--especially of the victimizing of the non-binary and people of color. In so doing, we are drawn into the confessional spaces; the offering is an intimate discomfort for those who live it, and an alarming call to those readers who have not.
Soto delivers his verse across a variety of open forms, but one fairly unique device employed is the double-slash frequently appearing inside lines: the result is an underlining of significance, the reading of a break without distance, of breakage without release. I found myself fascinated by its readerly effects throughout.
Soto cites a number of influences on his work, but I am unsurprised that Eileen Myles is among them. The poetry here foregrounds a kind of captivity, slapping readers with graphic moments and discomforting juxtaposition. The result is a feeling of responsibility for what we so easily ignore or assuage our guilt by social slacktivism. We cannot close this book without at once a feeling of grateful release but also an understanding that we nevertheless are neighbors (and even allies) of death and terror.
Soto delivers his verse across a variety of open forms, but one fairly unique device employed is the double-slash frequently appearing inside lines: the result is an underlining of significance, the reading of a break without distance, of breakage without release. I found myself fascinated by its readerly effects throughout.
Soto cites a number of influences on his work, but I am unsurprised that Eileen Myles is among them. The poetry here foregrounds a kind of captivity, slapping readers with graphic moments and discomforting juxtaposition. The result is a feeling of responsibility for what we so easily ignore or assuage our guilt by social slacktivism. We cannot close this book without at once a feeling of grateful release but also an understanding that we nevertheless are neighbors (and even allies) of death and terror.
September 14, 2022
3.5+ Stars: Soto's poetry deals with a mix of political statements, personal narrative, and moving pathos around the topic of police violence. I know this title has been on a lot of lists lately, and with that I do agree that many of the poems have great value. This was especially true in the more personal lived experiences that were expressed in such brief, but explicit details throughout the collection. I should preface this review noting I don't know if I'm the intended audience and I get the sense that this might be popular among some (possibly many) readers, while it doesn't fall into my preferred genre of poetry. These are poetry poems with a capital "P" - if that's what you're looking for, then this is the book for you! Thanks to the publisher for this ARC.
October 10, 2022
Serving as both kindling for justified rage and a salve for wounds that slice deep across communities, Christopher Soto's debut collection is exactly as it ends: a reason to "Get the fuck up & fight"
For students of abolition everywhere, Soto's work is a clarion call for immediate and consistent action against the carceral state. In particular, The Children In Their Little Bulletproof Vests, Scizophrenic Fucker, and A Beautiful Day In The Psychiatric // Garden stuck with me.
"It's so American // The constant grieving of violets
Blooming state violence // What's left to say"
For students of abolition everywhere, Soto's work is a clarion call for immediate and consistent action against the carceral state. In particular, The Children In Their Little Bulletproof Vests, Scizophrenic Fucker, and A Beautiful Day In The Psychiatric // Garden stuck with me.
"It's so American // The constant grieving of violets
Blooming state violence // What's left to say"
November 24, 2024
Fantastic poetry collection exploring police violence, terror, terrorism, safety, agency and belonging. These poems are tragic, terrible, clever and funny.
Such a powerful collection of poems that mix political statements with personal anecdotes, the huge and global with the small and mundane. Queer, rebellious, true and personal, this collection touches on incredible violence through provocation, honesty and emotion.
Such a powerful collection of poems that mix political statements with personal anecdotes, the huge and global with the small and mundane. Queer, rebellious, true and personal, this collection touches on incredible violence through provocation, honesty and emotion.
May 15, 2025
While the writing style/format isn’t my typical go to I think and feel as though this collection is extremely powerful, meaningful, authentic, and genuine. I definitely feel as though there are parts to this collection that I will never understand, as it’s not for me to understand, but I feel honoured to have it shared with me. Space deserves to be held for these stories, they are invaluable. I appreciate the depth and vulnerability that lives inside these stories and works.
December 1, 2022
This is a book about pain. This is a book about freedom, belonging. But most importantly, it is a book about triumph, survival, and rising from the ashes. Funny, raw, queer, inspiring. Thank you for letting us in, Christopher. Much love.
March 22, 2024
(4.75) wow. Such a short, but powerful collection. This explores the definition of terrorist and the real terrors in this world and how they’re all connected. I thought the word choice and wordplay in this collection was brilliant.
My favorite poem was “THEN A HAMMER//REALIZED ITS LIFE PURPOSE“
My favorite poem was “THEN A HAMMER//REALIZED ITS LIFE PURPOSE“
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August 4, 2024Wowow highly recommend
Favorites:
The Future’s Bright // Beside A Nuclear Waste Site
The Terrorist Shaved His Beard
Transactional Sex With Satan
All The Dead Boys Look Like Us
The Joshua Tree // Submits Her Name Change
Favorites:
The Future’s Bright // Beside A Nuclear Waste Site
The Terrorist Shaved His Beard
Transactional Sex With Satan
All The Dead Boys Look Like Us
The Joshua Tree // Submits Her Name Change
July 21, 2022
This is an incredible collection. It should be taught alongside Claudia Rankine. It was so moving - both sad and empowering.
November 5, 2022
voice of struggles reaching out and fighting for social justice. Sad to read about kids in bulletproof vests but that is the world we now live in.
February 22, 2023
A mix of poems about police violence, queerness, and family trauma. I really loved some of these. Hope to see more from the author!
April 1, 2023
Beautiful and powerful collection
August 21, 2023
Sealey Challenge 2023
Book 20
Book 20
February 27, 2024
read for latinx literature class!
December 18, 2024
“Who’ll protect us // From police // If not ourselves”
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews