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The Nomads, My Brothers, Go Out to Drink from the Big Dipper
Few of us have had the opportunity to visit Djibouti, the small crook of a country strategically located in the Horn of Africa, which makes The Nomads, My Brothers, Go Out to Drink from the Big Dipper all the more seductive. In his first collection of poetry, the critically acclaimed writer Abdourahman A. Waberi writes passionately about his country’s landscape, drawing for us pictures of “desert furrows of fire� and a “yellow chameleon sky.� Waberi’s poems take us to unexpected spaces—in exile, in the muezzin’s call, and where morning dew is “sucked up by the eye of the sun—black often, pink from time to time.�
Translated by Nancy Naomi Carlson, Waberi’s voice is intelligent, at times ironic, and always appealing. His poems strongly condemn the civil wars that have plagued East Africa and advocate tolerance and peace. In this compact volume, such ideas live side by side as a rosary for the treasures of Timbuktu, destroyed by Islamic extremists, and a poem dedicated to Edmond Jabès, the Jewish writer and poet born in Cairo.
“With Waberi, the juxtapositions—surprising, provocative, and original—form a good part of the thrill themselves.”�Words Without Borders
Translated by Nancy Naomi Carlson, Waberi’s voice is intelligent, at times ironic, and always appealing. His poems strongly condemn the civil wars that have plagued East Africa and advocate tolerance and peace. In this compact volume, such ideas live side by side as a rosary for the treasures of Timbuktu, destroyed by Islamic extremists, and a poem dedicated to Edmond Jabès, the Jewish writer and poet born in Cairo.
“With Waberi, the juxtapositions—surprising, provocative, and original—form a good part of the thrill themselves.”�Words Without Borders
96 pages, Hardcover
First published April 15, 2015
2 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
About the author
Abdourahman A. Waberi
33books17followersAbdourahman Waberi nació en la ciudad de Yibuti en la costa somalí francesa, actual República de Yibuti. Se fue a Francia en 1985 para estudiar literatura inglesa. Trabajó como consultor literario para Editions Le Serpent à plumes, París, y como crítico literario para Le Monde Diplomatique. Ha sido miembro del jurado internacional del Premio Lettre Ulysses para el Art of Reportage (Arte del Reportaje) en Berlín, Alemania (2003 y 2004).
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 15, 2020
A nice collection of poetry. I did mainly picked it up because of the beautiful cover since I’m shallow like that, but I found myself enjoying the read. Not all where to my liking, but the collection gave a nice little introduction to the small country. I especially enjoyed the section “ink drawings�.
November 23, 2022
What a title. It def grabbed me right away.
There were a few really gorgeous poems in this, one in particular really hit me. There were a handful of poems that I felt I got really good sense of the author from, but the majority of them were just fine. I would say two 5 star poems, a handful of 4 stars, the majority being totally serviceable 3 stars. I will say, I wonder how much of this comes down to translation, especially with poems. I do wish I could have read these in the native language. Overall, a not bad poetry collection with some great imagery and a few funny moments, and a few really meaningful moments.
I would say if the description of this book interests you at all, it will be worth the read.
There were a few really gorgeous poems in this, one in particular really hit me. There were a handful of poems that I felt I got really good sense of the author from, but the majority of them were just fine. I would say two 5 star poems, a handful of 4 stars, the majority being totally serviceable 3 stars. I will say, I wonder how much of this comes down to translation, especially with poems. I do wish I could have read these in the native language. Overall, a not bad poetry collection with some great imagery and a few funny moments, and a few really meaningful moments.
I would say if the description of this book interests you at all, it will be worth the read.
July 24, 2024
I’m not very experienced at reviewing poetry, which probably means I need to read more. But I’ll try to just write a few things that stood out to me about this little book.
Waberi’s poems are atmospheric and dreamlike. I read this entire collection in one sitting, even reading most of the poems a few times through. And though they are minimal and simple, they clearly express emotion and evoke a sense of place. There are themes of desert dwelling, people who stepped out of the earth at the beginning of time, western vs. African, the artist at his craft, Islam, and many small things specific to the land that is Djibouti. I got an impression of what it means to be an educated man out of east Africa, stuck between two worlds, two religions, and several different languages.
Enjoyment: 4
Emotional impact: 4
Educational value: 4
=4
Read for my read the world challenge for Djibouti
Waberi’s poems are atmospheric and dreamlike. I read this entire collection in one sitting, even reading most of the poems a few times through. And though they are minimal and simple, they clearly express emotion and evoke a sense of place. There are themes of desert dwelling, people who stepped out of the earth at the beginning of time, western vs. African, the artist at his craft, Islam, and many small things specific to the land that is Djibouti. I got an impression of what it means to be an educated man out of east Africa, stuck between two worlds, two religions, and several different languages.
Enjoyment: 4
Emotional impact: 4
Educational value: 4
=4
Read for my read the world challenge for Djibouti
November 1, 2019
This is a very short book of poetry. The author gives us a look into this small country. He writes about the country's landscape throughout the book and paints a picture of what he felt when he looked at his country side.
This book only took me 30 minutes to read - it is really really short with really short poems on each page. They give you a small taste of the country, but not as much as I would have liked. I am not one to fully be able to appreciate poetry, but it was a good enough read. I think it will stay as my Djibouti book because there just aren't many things out there for this tiny country.
This book only took me 30 minutes to read - it is really really short with really short poems on each page. They give you a small taste of the country, but not as much as I would have liked. I am not one to fully be able to appreciate poetry, but it was a good enough read. I think it will stay as my Djibouti book because there just aren't many things out there for this tiny country.
February 28, 2022
The poems in this beautiful collection speak without pretensions. They range from themes of identity, community, to more meditative and metaphysical pieces that muse on the self, the world.
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March 11, 2016This book was featured in the Nota Benes section of the January/February 2016 issue of World Literature Today Magazine.
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