BOOKS

The Voice of Sheila Chandra

Alice James Books
October, 2020 / ISBN: 9781948579124
$17.95

Purchase from: Alice James Books / Amazon

From the publisher: Titled for the influential singer left almost voiceless by a rare neurological condition, the poems bring sweet melodies and rhythms as the voices blend and become multitudinous. There’s an honoring of not only survival, but of persistence, as this part research-based, pensive collection contemplates what it takes to move forward when the unimaginable holds you back.

Praise

"Kazim Ali’s newest collection of poems is brilliant and chilling and filled with sound. The Voice of Sheila Chandra is alive with formal invention and innovation that will surely be a fixture in contemporary poetry for years to come. Part researched document, part song, part deep excavation of the soul, there is much to learn from this book. Ali forces us to contend with history & the present in order to imagine a future where we survive." —sam sax

Reviews & Other Links

"Much of what the poet has presented to us is painful, yes, but it is also beautiful in how it uses voice as a symbol for continued imagination. Altogether, The Voice of Sheila Chandra is both an excavation and compilation of our survival." —NPR

"The source of Ali’s power comes not merely from the spring of language, but from the tides of history." — Colorado Review

"Ali’s poems are a joy to read—the lines tug at your heart, embed themselves in your mind as you turn them over and discover new meanings each time. These are poems that haunt."—International Examiner

"Kazim Ali on “The Voice of Sheila Chandra," Poetry Society of America

"If you've ever found yourself dancing to the classic `80s new wave tune "Ever So Lonely" by Monsoon then you're familiar with lead singer Sheila Chandra and possibly the story of the loss of her voice from a rare neurological disorder. Gay poet Kazim Ali, who titled his new book The Voice of Sheila Chandra, put the epic titular poem at the center of the collection, which combines research with craft." — Bay Area Reporter