Seasonal Velocities by Ryka Aoki

Seasonal Velocities Reviews

• 
  Cameron Sant

  Seasonal Velocities is like an intimate collage of Ryka Aoki's brain. It's made up of poems, memoir, essays, speeches, performance art, and when you step back from the individual pieces, it makes up the mind of one thoughtful and creative human being. Aoki is a survivor of many injustices, but her work still brims with compassion and hope for the future.
  
  The book could have been edited better--there are some misplaced quotation marks and the like--but all over the book is beautiful, thoughtful, and worth buying.
• 
  Josie Boyce

  Nice mixture of poems stories, creative non fiction, essays, from a dynamic trans voice. As a trans woman, much of the narratives spoke tome, and i learned something from almost every piece. The fiction, novel snippet at the end displayed a nice melding of the poet and the prose skills into an even stronger more defined voice. Great impulse buy.
• 
  Paul

  
  Review at asianamlitfans.
• 
  Jennifer Stoy

  When this was good, it was amazing. The section about Old Dykes and a Dog spoke to me as did the section about reuniting instead of doing outreach. Other segments didn't get me at the same level so I'm like "three for the total effect but that doesn't mean bad or not worth reading"
• 
  Simon

  About survival, giving voice, imagining new ways while holding on to the necessary old.
• 
  Ellie Burnett

  "So He declares it's a covenant. That this will never happen again.
  Whatever.
  It always happens again.
  A rainbow, He calls it?
  Tomorrow, He'll call it ice cream.
  After that, He'll take you to Disneyland."
  
  I really liked this collection. Fairly short but exceptionally powerful, Aoki's beautiful poetry and prose, split into seasonal sections, explores a range of themes including the impact of physical abuse, family, love, religion, the ways we change, being Japanese-American, being transgender...ultimately this visceral and evocative collection is an intimate and honest account of how we live.
  
  I would recommend this to anyone looking for a queer poetry, story and memoir collection. There were some minor issues with spelling/formatting on my kindle edition, but it didn't detract from the writing. It has left me with so much to reflect on, and some of the powerful imagery, including the poem excerpt I've quoted from here, will really stay with me.
  
  "Don't think you're so special it can't happen to you.
  For this is what fathers do.
  Colors after storms are nothing new.
  Red and violet, black and blue -
  His covenants are more for Him
  than they'll ever be for you."
• 
  Dennis Barbee

  This is probably one of the most moving collections of poems, prose, essays, and screenplays that I have read in some time. The stories of physical abuse are torment - but there are other stories here. Of love and of change and the ways in which we move through life. I thoroughly enjoyed the stories - all of them. These stories resonated with me and ask you to ask the deeper questions. I recommend this book highly (see 5 stars).
• 
  Lance

  I just finished this book, and it was everything. Maybe it's because I can't remember the last time I read really beautiful poetry, or because I love a good story (this book is full of them), or because so much of what Ryka writes about here isn't just gender theory but a theory of what it means to be human... but this book moved me way more than I was expecting. It was kind of one of the first times in a while that I read something and felt parts of my self nourished that I'd forgotten even existed. Definitely read this book. If you want to know about trans experiences from a brilliant trans woman of color... if you want to know about Hawaii though a queer lens... if you want a chance to think about the ways trans justice is relevant to everyone... if all you want to do is lose yourself in some heart-breaking poetry, then read this book.
• 
  James

  (3.5*)