Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC of this book !

"Sir, we are not welcome anywhere.
Only cemeteries don't mind our bodies."

Forest of Noise is a horrifying and brutally honest depiction of life in Gaza. Every page told a different, yet eerily similar tale of injustice and cruelty.

Although the book was short, it took me a while to get through it because of how uncomfortable it made me feel. That being said, Forest of Noise will not only disturb you, it will also enlighten those who still continue to turn a blind eye from the painstaking truth of the realities taking place in the land of Palestinian people.

This is not just a recommended read, but a necessary one.

This devasting collection of poetry shows the multi-generational struggle of those living in Gaza. Toha paints a horrific picture of the conditions in Gaza, describing the lack of food, being welcome nowhere, the need to travel for basic medical care, and how many mourn the births of their children, of the conditions they are being born into.

I lost count of how many times he said shrapnel, explosion, rubble, and bomb.

This poetry book is so important for understanding the conditions in Gaza, and everyone should read this book to learn and to support this poet and his family. It is not for the light of heart, but all should still read.

"No need for the radio: We are the news."

This collection of poetry was so powerful and moving that there was not a single page that didn't make me want to cry. It's one of the most important poetry books of our time, and I wish I could get everyone to read it.

Earlier this year, I read “Things You May Find Hidden in My Ear: Poems from Gaza” and was extremely moved by it. With that in mind, I was thrilled and grateful to have been given the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Forest of Noise by Mosab Abu Toha, his upcoming poetry collection, so thank you to Knopf and NetGalley!

Reviewing and rating a collection like this is challenging. It is a living, breathing narrative, unfolding in real time, reflecting current horrors. Both of Mosab’s books are unlike anything I've ever read. Mosab’s words are harrowing, deeply personal, and moving. I am in awe of this author and the vulnerability expressed on every page!

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for the ARC.

Mosab Abu Toha’s Forest of Noise is heartbreaking, vivid and poetic, demanding attention and forcing the reader to confront and understand the scale of the ongoing violence in Gaza, what erodes and what is left behind, if anything. Raw, honest prose and vivid language, the poetry collection demands attention and holds it, hoping the reader doesn't fade away with the pages.

Expected publication October 29, 2024

This collection of poetry really spoke to me on many levels most notably of truth. The horrors of war is palpable throughout yet it is much more than that. There is a tenderness and humanity in the poems that thankfully was not extinguished.. Mosab Abu Toha is a very talented writer and I look forward to reading more of his work.

Forest of Noise by Mosab Abu Toha is a powerful and evocative read. The imagery Mosab conjures in his writing, while dealing with heavy themes, makes this book profoundly impactful. Having previously enjoyed his work in The New Yorker, I was thrilled to receive an ARC of this book.

Mosab offers a poignant glimpse into a life in Gaza, sharing personal stories about his family and community. While writing poetry was his escape, he provided us a window into his world, allowing readers to experience the reality of Gaza's challenges.

This book is a must-read,a testament to the enduring power of literature to capture and convey the human experience. I believe it will resonate deeply with many readers and serve as a powerful reminder of the historical and personal struggles we face today. Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for the opportunity to read this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for the ARC!

Mosab Abu Toha’s "Forest of Noise" is a blunt collection of documentary poetry that follows the ongoing violence in Gaza from its epicenter.

It’s a complicated project.

Poetry about violence often seems like an exercise in futility because bloodshed makes the world contract; a poem should do the opposite. In other words, it can feel like trying to turn something destructive into something generative, and the result can read as artifice. Thankfully, that isn’t the case here.

Instead, the poet uses the futility of the form to bring readers close to understanding.

Visual documentary tends to focus on loss of life, but Mosab Abu Toha uses poetry to focus on a loss of living. Maybe a better way to say it is that he foregrounds the lives unlived, rather than simply depicting death. For example, we read about cemeteries that have been destroyed, resulting in not only present destruction, but also the erasure of the past and a choking of the future—a kind of death after death. For readers who are unable to consume the barrage of violent photographs or videos online without feeling distanced—a dulling of the senses—"Forest of Noise" offers a thoughtful alternative.

These poems wearily contort themselves into comprehensible shapes, constrained by the violence surrounding and penetrating them. Almost every line lumbers bluntly into place, which feels like the only way they could possibly exist. They are conscious decisions to reorder the world’s ruptured syntax.


There’s little doubt that this is an excellent collection.

That said, while reading, I personally struggled with the mediation afforded by the poetic form. As these poems pile up, their specificity is slowly replaced with a kind of anonymity. In a way, this could be seen as a testament to the impact of violence—it gradually dehumanizes and detaches—but that seems antithetical to the book's apparent intention to memorialize. I can imagine some readers encountering these as “powerful” poems and immediately moving on with their lives, but perhaps that’s just a challenge implicit in the form.

Regardless, this collection is bitterly needed, and I admire Mosab Abu Toha’s courage and belief that poetry can mean something in the face of genocide.

We see stories about Gaza on the news every day and, although I wouldn't say we've become numb to the atrocities happening there, Mosab Abu Toha's poems bring a very personal, up-close realness to the situation that you don't get by watching news stories. His poems are stories of his family, of shattered lives and broken dreams, of living an entire life surrounded by war and loss. These poems are haunting and, personally, I feel like everyone needs to read them.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read the ARC of this book.