| Title | : | Anything But Human |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9789811822049 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 96 |
| Publication | : | Published November 1, 2021 |
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Advance Praise:
“These are poems of aftermath and prototype. They are parables of how to survive a cataclysm we imagine has yet to come, but has actually already arrived.” — Lawrence Lacambra Ypil
“Daryl Lim’s sensual book is a Bacchanalia of banal and familiar objects crystallised into revelations.” — Yeow Kai Chai
“Here you will find a sensory playground for the overworked bourgeoisie, a zen retreat for production factors in a post-capitalist world, a city deconstructed that you will come to see anew.” —Amanda Chong
Anything But Human Reviews
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Continuing my great experiment of reading more SingLit — I found this book (by yet another Daryl - gosh haha) as strange as it was excellent. While this book won’t be everyone’s cup of tea (I did wonder many times if it was even mine) nobody said you had to take the ayahuasca! My favourite lines come from a stanza in “Nuclear Poem”: For the sake of our culture / please please please / take a step forward
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I have just reread this amazing poetry book superbly written by an award-winning Singaporean poet & author none other than Daryl Lim Wei Jie & and thought, why not pen a review along with it too! Post-apocalyptic fiction has been one of my most favourite genres for the longest time & simultaneously, I love poetry too. Upon hearing & laying my eyes on this post-apocalyptic & cyberpunk-sounding poetry piece after much research on what modern & genre-defying poetry books to read next, I could no longer restrain myself from hunting it down. As luck would have it, the ever resourceful Lit Books stocked the books & I decisively hastened my footsteps to the renowned indie bookstore & nicked the book there & then. I did not regret every second exerted on this hassle. I savoured every mesmerising word, phrase, verse & nuance the poet has masterfully strummed on these blank pages like a parched sage brush on an unblemished canvas. The ironic musings, daily observations, daytime reveries; subtle political, capitalistic & environmental ruminations; stark imageries, and urban illumination were an unprecendented surprise to me in elation yet they felt fresh, unique, modern, moving & timely although it has already been published for more than 2 years. As a plus point, it also tenaciously pays its homage to our inseverable, beloved Chinese roots. How could have a poet woven such a lush, diverse tapestry? I've watched A Murder at the End of the World & the characters talk about the logical & emotional dichotomy in a human psyche. We do not need to follow only sensical narratives, sometimes, the emotions & heart inherent in & evoked by words & phrases would suffice too. All in all, one of my most favourite poetry books of 2023 alongside 2 Ocean Vuong's poetry collections read this year. Solid 5⭐️!!
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4.5
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the funny, ridiculous, horrifying, tragic Absurdities Of Modern Life...
favs: Expression of Contentment, McDonald's with the Death Penalty, The Prophet's Day Out
Narrative (XI)
the night sky has been emptied
of the old constellations
and is available
for advertising -
Poetic Powerhouse!
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Apparently apocalyptic poetry but just as well may be contemporary observations of a visionary. A tour de force and one of the first books of poetry to come out of Singapore.
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Singapore Pastoral
The crows are fresh
with the scent
of our gloriously burnt dead
Around the corner
the boys rehearse the conquest
of our regional partners
The rumour is it's earmarked
for a spaceport, or sex tourism, despite
the legions of mosquitoes
World wars
are ways
to avoid cremation
Granduncle used to tell us
how it always smelt
of pigshit
The last tiger roams
with incredibly low
triglycerides
An old man drowns, feeding
the reeds, which we will use
to make our rice blue
