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Thrall
Thrall: Poems | Natasha Trethewey
7 posts | 13 read | 20 to read
19th Poet Laureate of the United States A powerful, beautifully crafted book.The Washington Post Ripe with the perfidies and paradoxes of thralldom both personal and public, it is utterly elegant.Elle Charting the intersections of public and personal history, Thrall explores the historical, cultural, and social forces that determine the roles to which a mixed-race daughter and her white father are consigned. In a brilliant series of poems about the taxonomies of mixed unions, Natasha Trethewey creates a fluent and vivid backdrop to her own familial predicament. While tropes about captivity, bondage, knowledge, and enthrallment permeate the collection, Trethewey unflinchingly examines our shared past by reflecting on her history of small estrangements and by confronting the complexities of race and the deeply ingrained and unexamined notions of racial difference in America. Natasha Tretheweys Thrall is simply the finest work of her already distinguished career . . . Rarely has any poetic intersection of cultural and personal histories felt more inevitable, more painful, or profound. David St. John, author of The Face: A Novella in Verse A voice that not only expands the position of [poetry], but helps us better understand ourselves. Her poems tell stories of loss and reckoning, both personal and historical. Dr. James Billington, Librarian of Congress
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rockpools
Thrall: Poems | Natasha D. Trethewey
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I hadn‘t come across Natasha Tretheway before (sorry. I‘m aware now she was a US poet laureate). In these poems she draws inspiration from paintings of children of black mothers and white fathers, as well as from her own relationship with her father. It‘s striking, powerful writing, that leaves me aware of things I wouldn‘t have seen before.

SaunteringVaguelyDownwards Trethewey is a fantastic poet, and this is my favorite of her books. I recommend you try and track down a video of her readings - the Library of Congress website probably has some! She really brings her work alive. 4y
rockpools @SaunteringVaguelyDownwards Thank you - I‘ll do that. I did feel I should spend more time with her, together with some of the paintings she references. 4y
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HeatherBookNerd
Thrall: Poems | Natasha D. Trethewey
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Fascinating and thought provoking collection of poetry considering the historical, social, and personal realities of being a mixed-race child of a white father. I don‘t read a lot of poetry, but am trying to broaden my exposure, so this was a great introduction to Trethewey. I need to find more of her books.

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HeatherBookNerd
Thrall: Poems | Natasha Trethewey
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My Christmas haul of books. Little bit of everything!
Hope everyone has had a lovely holiday however you celebrate.

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hissingpotatoes
Thrall: Poems | Natasha Trethewey
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5/5⭐ I am again in jaw-dropping awe at how Trethewey weaves themes/motifs throughout her collections, to the point that just when you start to forget about them she winds her way back to them in the most impactful way possible. I found especially brilliant the theme and imagery of looking back while trying to move forward, of the intricate relationship between nostalgia, knowledge, and progress. Cannot recommend enough. #NEWTsReadathon2019

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CarolynOliver
Thrall: Poems | Natasha Trethewey
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LectricSheep Natasha Trethewey! ❤️ Have you read Native Guard? 8y
CarolynOliver @LectricSheep I haven't yet--I started with Domestic Work (💯)--but it's on my list! She's fantastic. 8y
34 likes2 comments
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thereadingwomen
Thrall: Poems | Natasha D. Trethewey
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In recognition of #BlackHistoryMonth, we will be sharing books that speak into the African-American experience. First up, THRALL by Natasha Trethewey, a former United States Poet Laureate and current teacher at Emory University. In this collection of poems, she works through what it was like growing up with a black mother and white father in the Deep South.

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thereadingwomen
Thrall: Poems | Natasha D. Trethewey
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For #BlackPoetryDay, we're reading this stunning collection by Natasha Trethewey, a United States Poet Laureate. In "Thrall", Trethewey explores prevalent attitudes towards mixed-race people though historical and personal anecdotes. We had the chance to hear her at the Decatur Book Festival this year and she is a beautiful speaker as well. #thereadingwomen

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