THOU

Following the successful reception of her first book, The Shining Material, comes Aisha Sasha John’s THOU — a powerful collection of two long, narrative poems exploring the social space that exists between the self and others. Using the language that connects these two states of being, THOU investigates the idea of “you” — what it is and what it means to say “you,” the stories we make of our own multiple “yous,” and by extension, the “you” an author can make of her own book. Building on the emotionally charged language of John’s previous work, THOU will tantalize readers’ senses, and will provoke comparisons to such acclaimed poets as Anne Carson (especially Glass, Irony and God) and Alice Notley.

AUTHOR

Aisha Sasha John

Aisha Sasha John writes poetry and plays. Her work has appeared in The Capilano Review, Exile Quarterly, CV2, Carousel, and the Diaspora Dialogues anthology, TOK 3. In 2009, Aisha completed her M.F.A. in Creative Writing at the University of Guelph; in 2010/11, she’s writing a play called Kissy Kissy as part of Nightwood Theatre’s Write From the Hip program as well as Theatre Passe Muraille’s theatre creators group, Upstarts.

Reviews

“THOU is physical, fearless in its vulnerabilities, a sensing amid thought’s most succulent folds. THOU is a choreography of irresolute bodies, the insistent shifting of their positions. Aisha Sasha John is a poet of centrifugal energy, of reverberant intimacy.” —Michael Nardone

“…a truly beautiful book and a rare gift…” —Broken Pencil
“To read this book is to experience the poem happening to you – and to want in.” —Gillian Jerome, 49th Shelf

“Aisha Sasha John’s THOU re-plays that archaic pronoun as a constantly present movement and rhythm of attention: moments. These lines of poetry “shake a little” as the “I” narrates and choreographs a monologue of the self in motion; each page is the dance floor and John’s words break through the “I-as-you” with anticipation and grace.” —Fred Wah

“John is brilliant at communicating. She’s also really funny. Poems don’t get more direct and precise and unforgettable than this.” —The National Post