... arresting ... Articulation itself is key to these poems’ power: Yoon reminds us that another capacity special to our species is speech ... Yoon’s poems transmute suffering into something that can be communicated...
Her book is full of knives and other sharp edges, each honed by global historical narratives of war from the 1930s to the present day ... Yoon’s poems pay homage to those who have been abused by the basest version of humanity, as well as to the sanctity of self and home. There’s a lot of research threaded into these pages, so the burden doesn’t rest on the reader. We’re free to wade into images of bees, honey, and dead dandelions ... And while the book holds fast to its tone of measured rage and sardonicism, and maintains a steady eye that demands accountability, it does not rest in negativity. Yoon’s storytelling and investigation of her historical present for the sake of human improvement uplifts as it bears witness.
... strong stuff—especially for an American audience largely unfamiliar with the saga of the comfort women ... evinces [Yoon's] fascination with dreams, as well as language, translation, and cultural difference ... The poet’s delight in language is a counterpoise to the book’s darker themes.
'I’d like my poetry to serve to amplify and speak these women’s stories, not speak for them,' she writes. And to her credit, she does, in these well-researched, clear expressions ... Yoon’s is a brave new voice that respects how the past informs the present.
