Poetry. Cross-Genre. Literary Nonfiction. Memoir. South Asian Studies. African Studies. The U.S. debut of internationally acclaimed poet and performance artist Shailja Patel, MIGRITUDE is a tour-de-force hybrid text that confounds categories and conventions. Part poetic memoir, part political history, MIGRITUDE weaves together family history, reportage and monologues to create an achingly beautiful portrait of women's lives and migrant journeys undertaken under the boot print of Empire. "Illuminates with artistry and eloquence the shameful secrets of empire's history"—Howard Zinn.
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About the Author
Shailja Patel was born and raised in Kenya, has lived in London and San Francisco, and now divides her time between Nairobi and Berkeley. Trained as a political economist, accountant and yoga teacher, she honed her poetic skills in performances that have received standing ovations on three continents. She has been described by the Gulf Times as "the poetic equivalent of Arundhati Roy" and by CNN as "the face of globalization as a people-centered phenomenon of migration and exchange". Patel has appeared on the BBC World Service, NPR and Al-Jazeera. Her work has been translated into twelve languages. She is a recipient of a Sundance Theatre Fellowship, an African Guest Writer Fellowship from the Nordic Africa Institute, the Fanny-Ann Eddy Poetry Award from IRN-Africa, the Voices of Our Nations Poetry Award, a Lambda Slam Championship, and the Outwrite Poetry Prize.
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More About the Author
SHAILJA PATEL was born and raised in Kenya, has lived in London and San Francisco, and now divides her time between Nairobi and Berkeley. Trained as a political economist, accountant and yoga teacher, she honed her poetic skills in performances that have received standing ovations on three continents. She has been described by the Gulf Times as "the poetic equivalent of Arundhati Roy" and by CNN as "the face of globalization as a people-centered phenomenon of migration and exchange". Patel has appeared on the BBC World Service, NPR and Al-Jazeera. Her work has been translated into twelve languages. She is a recipient of a Sundance Theatre Fellowship, an African Guest Writer Fellowship from the Nordic Africa Institute, the Fanny-Ann Eddy Poetry Award from IRN-Africa, the Voices of Our Nations Poetry Award, a Lambda Slam Championship, and the Outwrite Poetry Prize.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
By jandeder
Format:Paperback
here's what I felt after my first experience of Migritude:
For Shailja after Migritude
you pack a hefty wallop, Ms Patel,
you and your brew
distilled from bushels of memories
soaked in admonition
injected with judgment
corked carefully away like family treasures
left to ferment subcutaneously
steeped in your bones to marrow of rage
til
when the time is ripe
through every pore every follicle
you secrete the untold stories
two hundred proof, they burn going down
light headed we listen
heavy hearted we hear
we drink deep draught of your migritude
reel but do not fall
we are swamped in Niagara of your migritude
but do not drown
we are burned in Vesuvius of your migritude,
smelted, burned clean.
You, smelter
aglow.
I hope everyone gets to experience this unique and uplifting work.
For Shailja after Migritude
you pack a hefty wallop, Ms Patel,
you and your brew
distilled from bushels of memories
soaked in admonition
injected with judgment
corked carefully away like family treasures
left to ferment subcutaneously
steeped in your bones to marrow of rage
til
when the time is ripe
through every pore every follicle
you secrete the untold stories
two hundred proof, they burn going down
light headed we listen
heavy hearted we hear
we drink deep draught of your migritude
reel but do not fall
we are swamped in Niagara of your migritude
but do not drown
we are burned in Vesuvius of your migritude,
smelted, burned clean.
You, smelter
aglow.
I hope everyone gets to experience this unique and uplifting work.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
"Migritude" needles, demands, thrills -- Caution, this book will change you
November 3, 2010
By Paul Dosh
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Shailja Patel's "Migritude" needles your conscience, demands that your muscles awaken to the riotous dance of social justice, and thrills your literary taste buds with its epic roller coaster through the bitter valleys of imperial violence and the savory peaks of revolutionary triumph. Plus it takes care of all your holiday shopping in one fell swoop -- admittedly, a few of your in-laws may take your gift of "Migritude" as some sort of personal criticism of their unenlightened embrace of capitalism -- but that's just the signal for you to take them to a live performance of "Migritude." The best book I have ever read; the best poetry I have ever experienced.
Paul Dosh
Associate Professor
Macalester College
Paul Dosh
Associate Professor
Macalester College
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By David Martin
Format:Paperback
This is a very intense and engaging book, as well as an education in itself -- in more than just political and cultural senses -- for the reader, especially if they are not familiar with the background Shailja comes from.
The things that stood out for me in this book are many. The menacing refrain of rising inflation in "Shilling Love" bringing home the impact of the manipulation of economies by Empire on people's lives, within and without. Harrowing family tales that double as exposures of crimes committed by Empire. Startingly evocative characterizations of the author's mother and father.
I found the structure of the book to be a challenge at first. A little perseverance will reward the reader, however, as it slowly comes together in the reader's mind as a satisfying whole.
It seems strange at first that the second half of the book is called "Shadow Book," when the effect is more like a sunlight of meanings and revelations (especially for the reader who has not seen the live performance.) But perhaps the shadows refer to the darker realities that are thrown in relief by the very shining of the author's intelligence and courage.
There are books which one may enjoy and then forget. This book you won't forget.
The things that stood out for me in this book are many. The menacing refrain of rising inflation in "Shilling Love" bringing home the impact of the manipulation of economies by Empire on people's lives, within and without. Harrowing family tales that double as exposures of crimes committed by Empire. Startingly evocative characterizations of the author's mother and father.
I found the structure of the book to be a challenge at first. A little perseverance will reward the reader, however, as it slowly comes together in the reader's mind as a satisfying whole.
It seems strange at first that the second half of the book is called "Shadow Book," when the effect is more like a sunlight of meanings and revelations (especially for the reader who has not seen the live performance.) But perhaps the shadows refer to the darker realities that are thrown in relief by the very shining of the author's intelligence and courage.
There are books which one may enjoy and then forget. This book you won't forget.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Sneha
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Shailja Patel's book is deeply satisfying for hungry readers who crave poetry that feeds the soul and nudges every brain cell awake. Beautiful writing that is extremely personal and yet manages to address the wider political issues of empire, injustice, colonialism and what it means to be an immigrant. This is not writing for the faint of heart - it is strong and rich and powerful; it is disturbing and uncomfortable but funny and tender. I'd recommend this to anyone who loves poetry, anyone who is looking for a good Christmas gift to buy, anyone at all...
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Ira Israel
Format:Paperback
"Migritude" is a very powerful, poignant, and insightful book full of rich personal postcards that vividly paint a much larger and somewhat horrifying portrait of the injustices of hegemony in the modern world. Shailja Patel is a terrific writer and great poet and I was very very moved by her stark juxtapositions between the empire(s) (currently singular but that is changing) and the colonies. I highly recommend this wonderful book!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Joan O.
Format:Paperback
With Migritude, Shailja Patel has taken activist poetry to a whole new level. Her eloquent piece brilliantly exposes Empire and its legacy of colonial atrocities, oppression and domination. Yet, amid all the pain from injustice, admiration is evoked by the defiant voice of the persevering migrant. A voice whose passionate, rage-filled cries for justice pour out onto the pages of Migritude, as she fights to shed her labels of race, ethnicity, nationality and gender. Migritude is seasoned with powerful moments that led my mind wandering, but soon after had me yearning to return and devour what words remain. If you are in the market for some politics, feminism and anti-imperialism, the package doesn't come any better than Migritude.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Sara Goff
Format:Paperback
I stumbled upon a screening of Migritude a few years back while staying in Nairobi and felt compelled to live its message of brutal honesty, if I dared. I read this book fast, just to feel its energy, like a tidal wave overpowers in a flash. Completely soaks you, pulls you in, pummels you, and leaves you ecstatic to be alive. I read this book slow, just to expand my capacity to love, to hate, to understand and to forgive. All in this brief, timeless experience: Migritude.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Kind of like what happens when a musician listens every day to the ordinary sounds that surround him or her and one day suddenly realizes that s/he is surrounded by a symphony that is aching to be set free. Clacking of train wheels, crying, laughing, boxes opening and shutting, fabric swishing, envelopes tearing open, sotto conversations in the next room that you cannot hear, shouted conversations in the same room that you wish you couldn't. Suddenly unified into something epic. With a devastatingly calm voice intoning softness, steel, anger, laughter, fury and joy, from the center of a whirlwind.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
I love this book
Migritude is exceptionally well designed and recently received a graphic design award. It is a book you want to buy in it's physical form to truly experience a fresh literary... Read more
Published 4 months ago by L. C. Talmadge
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Note to a Poet
A Note to a Poet
There is no way to explain a poet's voice, except to say there are all the nations,
all the villages, all the people, all the salvations, all the... Read more
There is no way to explain a poet's voice, except to say there are all the nations,
all the villages, all the people, all the salvations, all the... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Vince Storti
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful, evocative, unforgettable
just finished reading "migritude" and i feel like all my senses are alive with fire and joy, and i'm loving this moment because i am living it through the eyes of a poet-goddess :)... Read more
Published 17 months ago by n.a.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Outstanding work, sure to last, well worth owning
Shailja Patel's first book length work is a marvel. MIGRITUDE is derived from Patel's stage production of the same name, which traces her family's story/her story/the story of... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Ravi C.
5.0 out of 5 stars
migritudiness
i liked the part about the fold
and the tenderness with which
the fist smashes the face of denial
i grooved to the synchronicity
of the drone tuned to... Read more
and the tenderness with which
the fist smashes the face of denial
i grooved to the synchronicity
of the drone tuned to... Read more
Published 20 months ago by B. Auerbach
5.0 out of 5 stars
Eloquence and rage
Seldom have I read a book in which such powerful eloquence and red hot rage danced together so intimately. Read more
Published on June 14, 2011 by Cynthia
5.0 out of 5 stars
Poignant, vivid and powerful
The potent reminder of "Shilling love" brought me to tears.
I remember well Kenya's "lost decade" and how it intensified my guilt as a "victim" of fierce "Shilling love" in... Read more
I remember well Kenya's "lost decade" and how it intensified my guilt as a "victim" of fierce "Shilling love" in... Read more
Published on January 23, 2011 by rsunshine
5.0 out of 5 stars
Courage prevails
I feel the courage that Shailja Patel has to tell her story, and despite her terrible, yet clear assessment of our shortcomings (often "crimes") she chooses to live "where the... Read more
Published on January 4, 2011 by Pam Gill
5.0 out of 5 stars
Intention, Declaration, and Execution. Ache!
I cried over Migritude in the bathroom. I cried over the gift from the mother turned revolutionary, the gift of a mangal sutra / an artist's life: Intention, Declaration, and... Read more
Published on December 7, 2010 by Arlene Diehl
5.0 out of 5 stars
Deeply moving and incredibly intense
I got this book as a Christmas gift, and opened it early. I didn't put it down again for the rest of the evening. Read more
Published on December 3, 2010 by Alke
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