| Title | : | Dialect of Distant Harbors (Notable Voices Series) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1933880937 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781933880938 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 112 |
| Publication | : | Published October 31, 2022 |
With wonder, empathy, and even rage, Dialect of Distant Harbors summons a shared humanity to examine issues of illness and family. Dipika Mukherjee’s poems redefine belonging and migration in a misogynistic and racist world. “A grievous vastness to this world,” she writes, “beyond human experience.”
As the world recovers from a global pandemic and the failure of modern government, these poems are incantations to our connections to the human family—whether in Asia, Europe, or the United States. Dialect of Distant Harbors focuses on what is most resilient in ourselves and our communities.
Dialect of Distant Harbors (Notable Voices Series) Reviews
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Dipika Mukherjee fuels a reader’s wanderlust in her collection of poems. Her work spans from Wisconsin, to Amsterdam, to Guan Yin Peak. In fact, Mukherjee is a traveler, considering herself a nomad who belongs nowhere and everywhere. But, it not solely the locations that captivate her audience. It is the perfectly detailed and relatable feelings she describes. She captures the human experiences in different forms, like death, assault, immigration, and even in tender, often forgotten, moments.
Most admirable about this collection of poems is the relevance and relatability: the pains of womanhood, the feeling of anomie, the case of “otherness,” and arbitrary labels that divide us. She eloquently puts into words the thoughts we seldom share and, instead, allow to rattle in our heads. Her words may be foreign to some, as she draws from languages that comfort her. As readers dive deeper into her work, it’s understandable why comfort may be needed. Mukherjee discusses rape, racism, immigration, and death; and pulls from historical events to do so.
Though the harbors might be distant in relation, Mukherjee makes them feel closer than ever. -
Dialect of Distant Harbors offers a full sensory experience of the human existence, in all of its devastating heartbreaks but also its beauty. This collection brought out so many emotions but the ones that will stick with me the longest are those related to wonder and celebration of the magic that surrounds us. One poem refers to “new magic, and the sizzle of endless possibility,” while another poem offers a reminder that “we dance, singing with mingling exultant / breath, over this transient field of joy.” These are poems to sit with, read multiple times, savor, and swoon over. I highly recommend this collection by Dipika Mukherjee and will be reading more of her books.
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Dialect of Distant Harbors is
Dipika Mukherjee’s third poetry collection. The languague is inflected by her many lives. She is a sociolinguist, novelist, and poet; Bengali, global nomad, and currently based in the Windy City.
Amsterdam is one of Mukherjee’s many past homes. Of course, she needed to launch Dialect of Distant Harbors here. This month, I had the honor of moderating that launch at Perdu, Amsterdam’s poetry temple. Fellow poets Mia You and Milla van der Have shared the stage to discuss how they, too, write in dialect.
To read the full review, please visit my website for
Dialect. -
Having read other books by Dipika Mukherjee, dying to get my hands on this one!
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I thoroughly enjoyed this collection. The descriptions were visceral and the author balanced accessibility with craft very well.
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A beautiful collection of poems, worth lingering over.
