Maxwell Suzuki
  • Home
  • Writing / Visual Art
  • Reviews
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Home
  • Writing / Visual Art
  • Reviews
  • Blog
  • Contact

Reviews

Review of Can This Wolf Survive? by Rafael Zepeda

8/25/2022

0 Comments

 
​Can This Wolf Survive? By Rafael Zepeda is a collection of poems that center around Los Angeles and the experiences of aging. The collection had a strong sense of place, and the relationships described have depth. Though, this collection felt out of place and deeply aged for being published only a few years ago.
 
Zepeda, having more experience as a fiction writer, seems to have written the poems with the same approach as he would fiction. In effect, the poems read with a dull linearity, where few risks are taken with line breaks/stanza distinction (lines are of only one sentence, stanzas feel isolated), dialogue, or the abstract. In truth, this had made me question if poetry was the right form for the stories and moments Zepeda wanted to tell.
 
I also began to question the intent and integrity of some of the poems such as When I Heard Burkowski Die, Rashomon Revisited, and A Descent into Baja. The first of which seems to have only been written to create a connection between Zepeda and Burkowski without much consideration into the craft of the piece. Like many of the other poems, its effect seems self-indulgent and only there to try and make Zepeda’s name associated with famous writers.
 
In Rashomon Revisited, it was unclear what the motivation of the poem was about. To me, it seemed like it was trying to feel superior to the subject, a woman questioning him about his support of the LGBTQ community, where he would be able to get the final word in. It gave me an uncomfortable feeling, and only confirmed my thoughts after reading A Descent into Baja. This poem is initial unassuming, where Zepeda describes the places he visits in Mexico, but what really irked me was his use of the outdated and distasteful term transvestite. The poem would’ve been decent enough had he not used the word, but confirmed my thoughts on his true feelings, initially raised in Rashomon Revisited.
 
This collection is a disappointing foray into an older man’s antiqued thoughts. And even more disappointing is Jim Harrison’s praise of Zepeda on the back cover.
 
Final Rating: 2/5
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Maxwell Suzuki is a writer, poet, and photographer based in Los Angeles.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021

    Categories

    All
    1/5
    1.5/5
    2/5
    2.5/5
    3/5
    3.5/5
    4/5
    4.5/5
    5/5
    Ada Limón
    Aldous Huxley
    Alexander Chee
    Ali Araghi
    Anne Lamott
    Austin Kleon
    Brandon Taylor
    Brett Biebel
    Brit Bennett
    Cathy Park Hong
    Chen Chen
    Colson Whitehead
    Dang Thuy Tram
    Delia Owens
    Devon Capizzi
    Dianne Suess
    Elie Wiesel
    Esteban Rodriguez
    Faith Shearin
    Fiction
    George Watsky
    Hanya Yanagihara
    Jean Kwok
    John Green
    Joy Kogawa
    Juhea Kim
    Julie Otsuka
    June Jordan
    Katsu Kokichi
    Kaveh Akbar
    Kenzaburō Ōe
    Kiese Laymon
    K-Ming Chang
    L.A. Johnson
    Madeline Miller
    Magazine
    Marc Lamont Hill
    Masaki Fujihata
    Matthew Salesses
    Michelle Zauner
    Natalie Diaz
    Natsuo Kirino
    Non Fiction
    Ocean Vuong
    Photography
    Poetry
    Rafael Zepeda
    Sally Rooney
    Sarah Fawn Montgomery
    Sequoia Nagamatsu
    Stephen King
    Steven Pressfield
    Tracy K. Smith
    Truman Capote
    Victoria Chang
    Viet Thanh Nguyen
    Yoko Ogawa
    Yoshiko Uchida
    Yukio Mishima

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.