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could have been good dirt
if you had allowed my love
to see the real you."
Wennerstrom has crafted a thought-provoking book of poems. The first group of poems, “If I Were Her,” begins by speaking to someone who has “dirt” in their eyes. This person does not appear to see the poet for who she truly is. Sadness and grief are woven into the author’s words. She writes of finding herself in someone else’s space, perhaps implying that the author feels lost inside the presence of the person she is speaking to. Failed sexual arousal is alluded to next. Harsh words are written about the author’s lover not being able to perform because of the illicit side effects of drugs. The author tells her lover that she resorted to “porn-surfing” to study love-making techniques of porn stars. The first series of poems ends with the author saying good-bye to her lover.
The second half of the book, titled “My Dog Father Shadow and My Pussycat Mother Tongue,” takes on a new tone. The author and her “pussycat mother tongue” discuss the poet’s age. The poet is, in fact, many ages. She next discusses age with her “dog father shadow,” who offers the poet a “hundred Swedish krona for every idea you let into our head.” This group of poems ends with the author professing her gratitude for being able to write down her words. Overall, this is a tense and sincere group of poems. Readers will certainly feel sympathy for the author and will easily empathize with her struggles to find herself whole again after the loss of a lover.