I have mixed feelings. On one hand, there are poems that have this lyrical portrayal of nature with allusions on despair, relationships, body image, sexuality and inner feelings of an outer world, on the other hand there are graphic images of violence and decay, which make me uncomfortable.
As a whole this is a small book! Most of the poems are short, and the book also contains an interview with her. I liked the interview because I feel like I got to know her a bit better as a result, and there are a few poems that really stood out to me.

Kazam Ali has done a wonderful job in translating this deep, lyrical and dark poems.
Poems are not my thing but this was really good set of poetry.

One of my favourite poem from the book is -

"I will not live more than I need This is what my mother said This is what my father said You have to know to leave when there is still time."

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the arc.

When The Night Agrees To Speak To Me reads like one long night of running on the beach and through forests. It brings to mind King Lear's madness on the moors, and the raw longing expressed in two languages just hits so beautifully.

Because of the numbered/titleless poems, it is hard to pick out favorites or return to previous pages. Since I usually read poetry books one or two pieces at a time, I found it difficult to diverge from my comfort style. Regardless, I respect the artistic choices made for this book, and I can clearly see how much they contribute to the overall quality,

Every word is intentional, every word has a purpose. The poems are emotionally engaging, and the beautiful word building really touched my heart. The poems are wonderfully written, sometimes harrowing, but a joy to read nevertheless.

*I received a copy of this book from NetGalley for review consideration.

Many thanks to Netgalley, HarperCollins Publishers India and the author, for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Poetry in my opinion is a hit or miss. When The Night Agrees To Speak To Me is a book of poetic prose about carnage, sexuality, despair, body image, female body in a male world, so on and so forth. I some how always struggle with translations. This book made me wish that I was more fluent in French and could understand the nuance as written by the author. This book has left me with feelings hard to absorb, yet they are there.

I must admit that most of Devi's poems require extensive comprehension and analytical skills to understand the meaning lying beneath the exterior. However, I must also admit that even though I completely don't understand most of her poems, I still find them quite beautiful and contemplative.

She is a goddess. She showed her truths in her poems (but you need to decipher it first to fully understand the meaning). I love her poems. I appreciated them, and I engraved them in my soul and body. Forever thankful for stumbling upon this beauty.

"...the some of moments comes to nothing
Survival feels useless: death is so overrated
There was nothing before and will be nothing after."


Massive thank you to Harper Collins and Netgalley for the eARC!

Before reading this collection of poetry, I've never read anything written by Mauritian writers. While I certainly can appreciate its content, I have mixed feelings. On one hand, there are poems that have this lyrical portrayal of nature with allusions on despair, relationships, body image, sexuality and inner feelings of an outer world, on the other hand there are graphic images of violence and decay, which make me uncomfortable. Maybe, that was the whole point of them and I just didn't appreciate the hidden meaning.

Although that was not exactly my cup of tea, I would still recommend to checking it out if you are a poetry reader.

I want to mention the work of the translator Kazim Ali, who has done a thorough job of conveying Ananda Devi's work for English speaking readers (the collection has been translated from French). There is also a short note on translation and an interview between the translator and the author at the end of the book, which I haven't expected, but really liked.

Please check trigger warnings list before picking it up (self-harm, trauma, suicide, depression - these topics are talked about in details).

A lovely set of poems and I loved the idea of translations. I dont speak the language so wasn't sure if it made as much sense in different but the English translation was beautiful.

Thank you for the advanced reader copy.

Beautiful and immensely emotional. The writing style really got to me I will definetely be reading more works by this author. Thank you netgalley for the arc.

Absolutely beautiful. I don't often see translated work published side by side with the original work. It provides a sense of accountability for the translation, as do the featured essays that examine not just the author's intention but the responsibility of translation and communication. And that's without even mentioning the quality of the essays, the examination of the art in a way that truly elevates it. On its own, the poetry would be enough to be admirable, but the care placed into this book goes beyond just what is written. Writing reviews for good books of poetry always feels so embarrassing- how am I supposed to take work that is so distinct and crafted and distill it into a short review? This will be a book I reread and discover all over again.

This poetry book talked about the divine power and weakness in sexuality when presented to different-minded individuals, It addressed different ideas of equality and self-acceptance, but more importantly, it gave me a sense of understanding human nature better.

I consider the interview with the author a part of the novel because even the responses were from the heart directly and they were poetic that shifted my reality when reading through. I can say with confidence that this became an immediate favorite and I cannot wait to read her other work(s).

I really liked the first half of the book! The poetry was so beautiful and so well written! Half of them are highlighted on my kindle and I really did love and appreciate this poets writing. I just wish there had been more of it!
If felt like after the halfway point the flow of the poems completely switched. Much longer and chunkier and it just turned into a Q&A with the poet!
Don't get me wrong I like that but not for half of a book!

Anyway, I did love how it had each poem in French then in English! And reading the Q&A I loved how that resonated with the poet and why she decided to do it!

I love the story of Kazim Ali's discovery of this book and natural translation, a compulsion he couldn't resist.

And I appreciated the prose sections of the book, which felt there was a kind of urgency to the subject.

The initial poems in the collection had that ambiguous "you" and the more abstract swath-painting of existential feelings, which didn't feel as if they had any "teeth" for me. As a reader, I wanted more to hook into in terms of detail and circumstance.

I want to thank NetGalley and the publishers for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I read this within an hour and thoroughly enjoyed it. Many and many of the poems hit a deep place inside and I will be looking into the author's backlist titles. This poetry book talked about the divine power and weakness in sexuality when presented to different-minded individuals, It addressed different ideas of equality and self-acceptance, but more importantly, it gave me a sense of understanding human nature better.

I consider the interview with the author a part of the novel because even the responses were from the heart directly and they were poetic that shifted my reality when reading through. I can say with confidence that this became an immediate favorite and I cannot wait to read her other work(s).

Favorite Quote:
"In the end, the skin hides the rotting that goes on beneath, and is the only armor against death."

Thank you Net Galley and HarperCollins Publishing (India) for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review and thoughts..

I have a love-hate relationship with poetry, so unfortunately I didn't get to enjoy this one as much as I wanted to. I enjoyed it in parts but overall it didn't work for me. Though I must say that I loved the way the French version accompanied its translation in every instance. Made it feel more complete somehow.

This was beautiful. I randomly selected it because the title and cover intrigued me and I was interested to read more poems in translation. I will definitely be reading more by this author and several lines will be stuck in my brain for days to come.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read a digital version of this book!
Poetry has always felt like challenging genre to review, when some poems that inscribe themselves into your brain and others can simply feel like page fillers within the same book.
This however, may be the easiest poetry book I’ve ever had to review. As the visceral reactions and emotions I felt from this collection were unlike many I’ve felt before whilst reading. The dark, gritty and sometimes sensual poems contained in this book are some I’m sure to never forget. This truly is a stunning collection whilst also being highly accessible to beginners dipping their toes into the genre.

The English translation and original French are provided in this collection and an interview with the poet is included at the back where the issues around translation are discussed, among other things. A lot of thought has gone into the structure of this book - and it works well.

The majority of the poems are lyrical, dark, and emotive. I loved the fifth poem, 'Outside, the brambles wait' which has beauty in its simplicity and language. The final couplet is

'Rain on my skin
A gown of acid.'

I was so impressed by this poetry collection, especially as it is translated from French to English. The book gives you the two side by side and although my French is very poor these days, I still enjoyed looking between the two. You would never have guessed that this is a translated work, Kazim Ali has made Devi's poetry run so smoothly and beautifully. It is a credit to both of them - Devi's original text must be just as easy and enjoyable to read. Here are a few snapshots of pieces that I enjoyed:

Poem 9:
"Peel back my skin. Unclothe me of myself,
Look closer:
Read a fortune in my guts."

Poetics of Islands:
"I could have written poetically of the islands since they draw our destiny with their constellations on the ocean; I could have spoken from the heart of this resonance, the sound of water on the sense, forgetting that their volcanic earth and basalt roots are all that anchor them and keep them from drifting out to sea, that they hold in them the stamp of time, of the ages, of people sanded down, the people we have become."

When the Night Agrees to Speak to Me by Ananda Devi

This is a poetry and prose collection by Mauritian author Ananda Devi and is translated from French "Quand la nuit consent à me parler" by Kazim Ali.

I loved the way English each piece was accompanied by its French counterpart. It feels complete.

Themes that resonated with me were those of words unsaid, relationships and discourse on the female form / body in a way that is completely new.

There are no titles, only numbers so when talking about my favourites I would have to say number 18:

"You are the measure of silence
And the noise that breaks it
The word is final denial
There were no murders without words to name them
What is left for you to say?
Imperfect word, word defeated."

Also numbers 22, 30, and some others that you will need to read for yourself 😊

Something quite different and which was a game changer for me was an interview with the author at the end, which gives insight and gave me an added appreciation for the work. I've never read anything from Mauritius and would not have given due consideration to the various cultures that have influenced the work.

"Poetry is our vein a door without it words die a slow death."

If you enjoy women led literature and of course poetry then I think you will like this collection.

I'm so excited that my first #NetGalley read was this copy of #WhenTheNightAgreesToSpeakToMe and look forward to discovering and sharing more gems, like this one, with you.