If They Come for Us: Poems

A debut poetry collection that looks into what it's like to be a Pakistani Muslim woman in America.  Filled with anger, joy, confusion and love, she tells her story.  A story of being orphaned, coming of age without a mother, questions about race and sexuality, and love for a world that put a target on her back.  For such a short book, it packs a wallop. Is this the best book of poetry ever written?  No.  But it's good, and it's important.  I find myself gravitating more and more toward stories about immigrants or other cultures in America, what they have to deal with, how they try to adapt, because I fear becoming complacent- forgetting for even a moment that what is so easy for me isn't for everyone- that we aren't all equal in other's eyes even if everyone is in mine.  Does this make sense or am I just rambling?  For me, the first step toward making an America that loves and accepts everyone is accepting the differences and the past- what they had to go through and their heritage.  I want to understand how others feel, because ignorance is just not an option.  As I have always found I learn and understand best when things are written, it just makes sense for me to seek books like these out.Excuse me while I climb down from my soap box.   The poems and exerts here made me smile sometimes, and cry in others.  It made me feel, as all good writing should.  I found pieces that surprised me, and resonated with me.  It was honest, open and beautiful... even if the prose were just a tad imperfect.  Actually, maybe more so because of that.  For me, this is a four star collection.On the adult content, there's some language and it does touch on some more adult themes but I still see this as being very teen friendly.  I give it a three.

I’ll admit it. I like haiku and limericks. Sonnets are too long.I only want to look at one page and get the idea. Short and sweet.Asghar’s poetry was longer than that. It sometimes covered many pages, but in those pages, I got the full picture of life as a young Muslim women from a family separated by the partition of India and Pakistan who immigrated to the US. It is a timely book in our world today. To live in two worlds and to be accepted fully by neither.One poem that sticks in my memory is the Microaggression Grid, which is like a bingo board. Being asked about the hijab, being told that her family is sooo authentic, having her name mispronounced by the teacher on the last day of school, and everyone thinking that she was an expert yogi are just a few blocks on the board.Yes, it was outside my comfort zone – both the topic and the format. It was a small but powerful book where I read a few poems at a time and thought about them afterwards. That is what the Modern Mrs. Darcy challenge is about.

This incredible collection is full of politics and identity and self discovery and highlighting differences, but at the same time invites you to learn about and understand the culture and identity of the poet. Some of these poems absolutely floored me. The first Partition floored me in a very different way than White Lie floored me or My Love for Nature floored me. With every turn of the page there was something unexpected and foreign to me, but also so viscerally familiar I felt as though we were living a mirrored childhood even though the similarities were only in the way it felt remembered. Absolutely amazing collection. I went in not knowing what to expect and left completely amazed at the power behind these words.

The book was first and foremost so enlightening. I learned so much about partition and plan to learn so much more. I heard Fatimah Asghar read at Split this Rock and have been excited to dive into the since then. The poetry is playful and gutteral, light and dark. It is breaking and healing all at the same time. I appreciate that she doesn't italicize anything which forces you to do your research and question the ease of understanding you take for granted as an English speaker. The book is an invitation into the experience of being "other" and traversing culture, never really being a part of either. Longing for home. "If They Come For Us" is an introduction to a great poet I can't wait to re-meet.

The poetry in this book helps me to understand the courage of those who are so discounted and oppressed. I was inspired by them to act better and do better with others.

Fatimah's poetry collection was passionate, clever, real, factual, graphic, funny, saddening, hopeful, and touching. I got insight into the lives of Indian women, and Indian people in general, as far as their reality and feelings, as Americans and as foreigners. It is an eye opener and Fatimah is quite the talented poet. Her writing kept me enthralled from beginning to end. I give this book four stars and would recommend it to people of all ethnicities, women especially.

Beautifully written, funny and creative with forms (almost every poem tries something new, from mad lib style news stories to a screenplay about the author’s family fleeing Kashmir during Partition). If you’re any minority at all and even remotely interested in history or coming-of-age poems, you’ll enjoy this. I would recommend it to everyone since these are such important conversations which too few people have. Wow that sounds like a bot wrote it... this was just a really good book, okay?

What I loved about this work is that, as a friend put it, "Fatimah excavates the truth." I felt that as I explored the collection. No one was safe from questioning, not even herself. There were many moments of such beautiful, heartbreaking images exploring the political, personal, and corporeal landscape post-partition. A raw coming-of-age narrative everyone should read--stories that shouldn't be forgotten.

“Nobody in India will love me& so I drew them a line”-Cyril Radcliffe, who drew borders of partitions in less than 40 days without ever previously visiting South Asia.Honestly, I read this book twice before even sitting down to write this review. The poetry is so deep, powerful and full of emotions that I felt the need to read this book again to feel the emotions which I may have missed the first time.This debut book of poems by Fatimah Asghar explores the history and difficulties of 1947 partition, the inheritances of violence, struggles of being a brown woman in the USA, vacuum created by loss of parents early in life and explorations of the body. In 100 pages, the book gives you so much to grasp, understand and sink in your soul.Her poems are deeply moving and intelligently written about the keen observations in her life. I am sure that her poetry will find its new form of saying and will give you a rush of emotions every time you pick up this book.This book touched my heart. I highly recommend this to poetry lovers.

I haven’t bought a book of poetry for decades. But after reading one of her poems on Facebook, I ordered thisIt is such a stimulating collection. From the heart rending incisive poems about partition to the humorous and painful poems about growing up the collection displays an amazing talent

A very powerful collection of poetry. It doesn't pull any punches and gets to the heart of the matter of belonging, difference, ignorance, displacement, and ostracism. yet there is also love, friendship and family here. Very well expressed and vivid. Great read.

I was a big fan of the concept behind the book and, while I didn't love this book as much as many of my peers, it delivers a really great experience. Plenty to learn from, be intrigued by, and the occasional challenge here and there.

Fatimah Asghar reißt mit jedem Gedicht mit. Geschichte, Emotionen, Hoffnungen. Wunderschöne Sprache. Jedes Gedicht ganz verschieden, und doch ist ein sehr klarer, sehr gut erkennbarer persönlicher Stil da.