Furies: A Poetry Anthology of Women Warriors edited by Eve Lacey
The Furies are infernal goddesses of justice and vengeance, daughters of Gaia and punishers of wrongs. In For Books’ Sake’s first anthology – in aid of Rape Crisis England & Wales – women writers rewrite the world with empathy, passion and fury. ‘It is hard to talk about rape,’ writes Bridget Minamore – but poets in this book do so fearlessly, gracefully and with honesty. ‘These secrets that we hold / Are hunted snakes on silver leashes / Venom restrained only by memory.’ Their words celebrate women, survivors and warriors, in a collection which gives voice to the unheard. Sometimes painful, sometimes empowering, the anthology explores a wealth of women’s experience, creating herstories that subvert and interweave with male-dominated histories.
‘I stand like marble under the cross, but you see when I left / there, I ripped up my dress and let go pure snot and eye-water,’ reveals Malika Booker’s Mary Magdalene, while Diana Brodie’s A Daughter Sings From the Earth quietly asks: ‘Why does Icarus, my brother, need wings?’ Furies brings together a collection of writers from around the world, uniting their voices in a powerful chorus that challenges and changes the status quo. Furies is an exquisite, compelling read. [Ceris Aston]