Dance the Guns to Silence: 100 Poems for Ken Saro-Wiwa

by Nii Ayikwei Parkes (Editor), Kadija Sesay (Editor), Paulo da Costa (Contributor)

The anthology Dance the Guns to Silence celebrates the life, struggles and achievements of Nigerian writer and activist Ken Saro-Wiwa with 100 poems from internationally-known and award-winning poets and laureates across the globe.

The title, Dance the Guns to Silence, is taken from one of Saro-Wiwa's own poems, "Dance". There is a foreword written by Ken Wiwa, Ken Saro-Wiwa's son, and editorial advisory from the renowned Malawian poet, now living in exile in Britain, Jack Mapanje.

The anthology features contributions from leading world poets as well as emerging poets from all over the world, including Amiri Baraka, Kamau Brathwaite, Jayne Cortez, Fred D'Aguiar, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Benjamin Zephaniah, Niyi Osundare, Helon Habila, Chris Abani, Syl Cheney Coker, Chenjerai Hove, Lemn Sissay, Moniza Alvi, Sarah Maguire, Pascale Petit, Nathalie Handal, Martin Espada and Kwame Dawes. With poems from Australia, New Zealand, Scotland, Mexico, South Africa, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Canada, the collection, edited by Nii Ayikwei Parkes and Kadija Sesay, has a number of poems translated from Bangla, Italian, Catalan and Castillian.

Genres: Poetry

200 pages, Paperback

First published November 23, 2005

Reviews

[Bobby · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the title reflects, this book is a compilation dedicated to Ken Saro-Wiwa. And as true for most compilations, some of the pieces spoke to me more than others. One aspect of this book that I really liked was the inclusion of poets from various cultures/countries. Although this made the book somewhat disjointed in the sense that it seemed to lack a certain flow or rhythm, the various styles and perspectives also emphasized how well-known and respected Ken Saro-Wiwa was, and the loss felt after his execution by the Nigerian military.