Villa Negativa

Description

With less content in my lifeI am infinitely more contentAgainst the backdrop of a siblings death, an eating disorder, and a few very dismal dating relationships,Villa Negativalooks for laughter behind darkness: the intruder who politely removes her shoes, the fabricator whose closest relationship is with fibreglass, the anorexic who sends the Diet Coke back because it tastes too good. Meditative and mischievous, confessional and philosophical, sincere and sly by turns, Sharon McCartneys seventh collection articulates an essential truth of self-knowledgethat to perceive something, we have to be able / to stand away from it.Praise for Sharon McCartneyPart satire, part self-examination, and far more layered than it first appears. Working largely in free verse moving between levity and sincerity in a short span The collection is brilliant: short, sharp, and eminently readable. Although it is a quick read, it is a deeply satisfying one.Publishers Weekly(starred review)So much is revealed in so few words Its a book that feels light, but its delivery is heavy, and worthy of contemplation McCartney is merciless in exposing vulnerability, but also builds an intimacy integral toMetanoias achievement.Quill & Quire(starred review)This collections paradoxes make its reflections feel earned. The poems reward readers not only by arriving at moments of insight but also by playing out the lines of thought, repeatedly restarting these processes of knowing and questing.Canadian LiteratureThe poems are satirical as the speaker examines herself, her life and her relationships the presentation is raw and empowered with many emotions like fear, sadness and, yes, even anger. Yet, within the words and emotions, the speaker delves into many of the deeper meanings of life, and death.Arc Poetry MagazineMcCartney has written exceedingly rhythmical poems and this is one of the reasons she holds a place of high esteem in the Canadian poetry scene for me Theres a ton to empathize over, rage against, or even pshaw in disdain towards, usually in the face of some sad sack male character Agonal and Preterminal, the third piece, perfectly sketches a painful portrait of an era of institutionalization, medicalese and the hush of shame.Marrow ReviewsYou dont read these poems, you feel them: Hammer in the head, shod foot on the throat, stiletto in the heart. Its those combos of wild, piercing insights (or unusual but poignant images); yep, thats what makes it good for youor kills you, laughing.George Elliott Clarke