#bright dead things

[asoftepiloguemylove]

MAY I BURN. MAY YOU SEE IT; DEVOTION THAT SWALLOWS YOU WHOLE

George Bataille // @inbredlamb // Richard Siken Litany in Which Certain Things Are Crossed Out // Olga Koroleva with grandfather // unknown // Richard Siken "Planet of Love," Crush // Otto Künzli Ring for two people / Brooch for two people // Ada Limón "The Good Fight," Bright Dead Things // Phoebe Bridgers Scott Street

#on love #on devotion #on heartbreak #poetry compilation #web weave #george bataille #richard siken #litany in which certain things are crossed out #olga koroleva #with grandfather #planet of love #crush #otto kunzil #ring for two people #ada limon #bright dead things #phoebe bridgers #scott street #words #poem #spilled poetry #spilled ink #dark academia #dark academia poetry #writing #spilled thoughts #poetry #dark academia quote

[jeanmoreaux]

Ada Limón, Bright Dead Things (2015)

#i have been thinking about this poem A LOT this week. #ada limon #poetry #bright dead things #on hunger #on wanting

[flowerytale]

Ada Limón, from "Accident Report in the Tall, Tall Weeds", Bright Dead Things

#ada limón #bright dead things #poetry #poem #typo #typography #words #*

[louisegluck]

Ada Limón, from “Lashed to the Helm, All Stiff and Stark.”

#ada limón #bright dead things #lashed to the helm all stiff and stark #***

[weltonboys]

ada limón

#bright dead things #ada limón #poetry #words words words #mine #dark academia #light academia #dark academic #soft academia #academia #dark academia aesthetic #quotes

[metamorphesque]

― Ada Limon, Bright Dead Things

[text ID: I remembered what had been circling in me: I am beautiful. I am full of love. I am dying.]

#ada limón #quotes #bright dead things #literature #poetry #poem #dark academia #romantic academia #chaotic academia

[starsstardust]

About Love from the last 5 books I read

Amanda Lovelace, the princess saves herself in this one // Trista Mateer, Aphrodite Made Me Do It // Ocean Vuong, Night Sky with Exit Wounds // Phoenicia Rogerson, Herc // Ada Limon, Bright Dead Things

#web weaving #web weave #parallels #about love #book quotes #poems #poetry #ocean vuong #night sky with exit wounds #the princess saves herself in this one #amanda lovelace #hercules #herc #ada limón #bright dead things #aphrodite made me do it #love #words

[strykerlancer]

— Ada Limón, from “Bright Dead Things.” / Hugh Goldwin Riviere - The Garden of Eden (1901)

#Hugh Goldwin Riviere #The Garden Of Eden #words #poetry #literature #quotes #out of my collection #lit #abyss of words #quote #but then i saw you #you you you #paintings #ada limón #bright dead things

[faunary]

Ada Limón, “In a Mexican Restaurant I Recall How Much You Upset Me,” from Bright Dead Things

[ID: But love is impossible and it goes on / despite the impossible.]

#ada limón #bright dead things #wait and see how you survive it all #poetry

[xbloodjunkie]

what remains grows ravenous - ada limon // sam winchester

#:) #no further comments your honor #sam winchester #sammy #spn edit #poetry #bright dead things #what remains grows ravenous #ada limón #ada limon #spn #supernatural #lucifer #sam and lucifer #winchesters #spnedit #the winchesters #kj edits

[vesselsofmercy]

– Ada Limón, Bright Dead Things

#ada limón #bright dead things #currently reading #poetry #contemporary poetry #lit #female poets

[mango-season]

Ada Limón, "After You Toss Around the Ashes", from Bright Dead Things

#Ada Limón #after you toss around the ashes #bright dead things #poem #poetry #lyrics #richard siken #ocean vuong #mangoszn #anne carson #virginia woolf #mary oliver #chen chen #warsan shire #excerpts #web weaving #parallels

[hozieresque]

My name is safe inside your mouth

Madeline Miller-The song of Achilles//Hozier-First Time//Tennessee Williams//Jodi Picoult-Handle with Care//Florence and the Machine-Spectrum//Ada Limón-Bright Dead Things//Richard Siken-Crush

#hozieresque #hozier #florence and the machine #richard siken #madeline miller #the song of achilles #tennessee williams #ada limón #bright dead things #crush #parallels #literary parallels #jodi picoult #aesthetic #academia #dark academia

[words-and-coffee]

I loved them: my own bright dead things.

Ada Limon, Bright Dead Things: I Remember the Carrots

#Ada Limon #Bright Dead Things #I Remember the Carrots #quote #quotes #poetry #poetry excerpt #poetry quote #poetry quotes #poem quote #poem quotes #poem excerpt #text #text post

[a-ramblinrose]

JOMP BPC || April 22 || Three Word Title:  Bright Dead Things by Ada Limon

#Bright Dead Things #ada limón #jompbpc #justonemorepage #book photo challenge #books #book photography #Not out of void but out of chaos

[marbleheavy]

Books That Rocked My Shit and Should Be Added to Your 2024 TBR

i love love talking about the books i’ve read and as the year approaches it’s close, here is a list, in no particular order, of books that really did numbers on me and should be added to a new year tbr!! it’s a mix of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction/memoir

1. Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History RF Kuang

Robin Swift, a Cantonese orphan, is adopted by an Oxford professor and trained for years in linguistics and languages so he can become a student at Oxford University at the Royal Institute of Translation (Babel). Babel handles all of the British empires linguistic concerns and, most importantly, it’s magic. Silver bars are inscribed with words that mean the same thing in different languages and the meaning lost between the translation enchants the bad. At Babel, Robin befriends his class, three other non-traditional Oxford students, and starts to see how Babel is used to serve the empire. He gets involved with the Hermes society, an anti-imperialist secret society, and gets caught between them and Babel as Britain declares war on China.

You know this book was gonna be on this list. It’s actually kind of cheating because I read it for the first time last year but I did a reread this September and my god, it’s so stellar. It’s a very fresh concept that revolves around the classical and the tension between those two is just delicious. My post structuralist heart that believes our world is composed of language was just beating out of my chest this entire book. Oh!! And don’t even get my started on the alternate/sub/second title!!!!

2. Why Religion? by Elaine Pagels

Elaine Pagels is a scholar of religion who has done extensive research into early Christianity and Gnosticism, and is known for her involvement and study with the Nag Hammadi documents, a collection of texts discovered that are thought to be early Christian and gnostic gospels. Using her robust academic background, Pagels explores her personal relationship to religion through a series of essays in this memoir-esque book. She writes about her time being religions and non-religious as well as the profound hardship and grief that she experienced throughout her life that led her to ask “Why religion?” and find her own answer.

This book is phenomenal. I was introduced to it in a religion course I took this semester and it has fundamentally changed my relationship to religion, even as someone who considered themself to be more or less an atheist. Pagels’ writing is intelligent and poignant but not difficult to understand. This isn’t a scholarly work and I would call it more of a rumination than an argument. The main note I have for potential readers is that it is very Christo-centric and also doesn’t spend much time with biblical canon, but considering this is a memoir and not an attempt to rationalize religion for anyone other than Pagels herself, I was not put off by it.

3. Bad Fruit by Ella King

Chronicling Lily’s life after graduating high school and starting at Oxford, the book revolves around her relationship with her mother. Her mother, from Singapore and with a troubled past that Lily begins to understand, becomes increasingly erratic and unhinged. As she does, Lily follows in her footsteps as she seeks to appease her mother while also trying to break free from her control. The central mage in the book is a cup of spoilt orange juice that Lily always tastes first to make sure it’s right for her mother.

First off, fruit. You know I’m always down bad for a book with fruit is the main motif! This is such a fantastic book exploring mother-daughter relationships, inherited trauma, and cyclical abuse. It’s devastating but never heavy handed and the writing is really fantastic. I think about this book all the time and how every character is so well written and so intensely fallible but never denied humanity.

4. She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

A fictionalized retelling of the Hongwu Emperor, the story follows a young girl who assumes the identity of her brother, Zhu Chongba, after he dies. The original Zhu was promised greatness and in the wake of his death and to survive alone, the new (and perhaps real) Zhu joins a monastery. The story is set during Red Turban Rebellions against the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty and after many years at the monastery, Zhu joins the Red Turbans and rises among the ranks all while she attempts to conceal her deception. The story also follows General Ouyang, a Mongolia general, as he struggles with his own status among the Mongols and his hatred for Zhu. The book follows the interpersonal struggles of the characters while the overarching war between the Red Turbans and the Mongols rages on and, often, intersects with the personal.

I read this book in two days and was just beside myself. My synopsis can’t even begin to cover the complexities of this book, it is trusty one of my favorites I’ve ever read. It is SO good. There were moments where I was left gaping at the page, I was so enthralled!! I’ve heard some people didn’t vibe with the pacing of the book because it spans so many years, but I read it’s o quickly that it wasn’t an issue for me. The way that gender and sexuality are handled in this book was so well done and very much a reminder that queerness and the experiences that come with it aren’t always able to be articulated, especially by contemporary language and labels. And the parallels between characters!! Zhu and Ouyang!!! I really don’t think anything I can say can do this book justice because it’s just fab. Really spectacular!!

5. Bright Dead Things by Ada Limón

Ada Limón is the current poet laureate of the United States and this is an earlier collection of hers. This poetry collection explores identity, place, and loss with an overarching feminist oomph. The books is in four sections, each embodying a different experience or theme but all interconnected. Limón’s writing is clear and vivid and her command of language is incredible.

This collection is fabulous! Although not my usual pick, Limón’s style radiates off the page and her skill is so obvious in every poem. She is so aware of space in all her poems and every word is picked with precision. Even in the moments of loss and grief that Limón writes about, her optimism is tangible and infectious. “How to Triumph Like a Girl” is one of my favorite poems ever and seeing it in context with the rest of the collection gives it so much more life. If you’re new to poetry, I would definitely check this out!! If you’re a regular poetry reader, you should also check this out!!

I have a million more books I want to talk about but this feels sufficient!! If you end up reading any of these or already have, PLEASE talk to me about it!! wishing you all a joyous and well read new year <3

#book rec #book rec list #poetry #nonfiction #fiction #babel an arcane history #why religion #bad fruit #she who became the sun #bright dead things #ada limón #rf kuang #ella king #elaine pagels #shelley parker chan #marble woes