Amani By Rais Neza Boneza

Amani By Rais Neza Boneza

Amani By Rais Neza Boneza

“Amani” means peace in Swahili. And these poems in this new collection by Boneza intend to do simply that. From the poem “Amani, my peace”: “Amani is calm like the moon.” The poems, too, are calming.

Amazon USA      

“Amani”

By Rais Neza Boneza

66 pages

ISBN: 978-81-8253-770-5

Cyberwit

Copyright 2021

 

Review by LB Sedlacek

 

“Amani” means peace in Swahili.  And these poems in this new collection by Boneza intend to do simply that.  From the poem “Amani, my peace”:  Amani is calm like the moon.”  The poems, too, are calming.

The poems presented are a mixture of free verse and rhyme.  It’s a good complement of writing styles.

From the poem “Ubuntu”:  “I wonder what can bring us the sense of unity / I wonder how consciousness can grow in our heart,”.  Unity and heart seem to be the overall theme to the book.  The flow is very soothing.  Poem after poem will sweep you along this journey with Boneza.

Reading this poetry book is like taking a trip in and through the heart of Africa.  There is so much to reflect upon, much to be changed, much to keep fighting for.

There is a rich tone to the book.  Soothing yet thought provoking.  Time seems to stand still like in a painting, one that you want to savor or look at again and again.

Much figurative language is used as the poems take on a resonance of their own.  The verses weave poems into pictures and emotions.

From the poem “This is the Kivu”:

‘The shadow of the sun is

shaped in the deep suffocating red dust,

the small whirlwind swipes the surface of the remaining ponds

turned purples…

the walls are dying, the stones fall

revealing the ruined houses

colored by a dark smoke

and the air filled with the scent of grilled flesh

and canon powder…”

A deep reality shines through in each stanza.  But, much understanding, appreciation and significance fills each syllable, bleeds into each word and line.

These poems carve a rhythm with the letters, the verses.  The book blends meaning into poetry with a serious heart.

“nightly, you sing your mournful refrain”, “I behold the stars”, “Go ahead my song because it is sweet” – all lines from different poems, yet each one powerful and moving.  Poems that spill out off the page like these are the ones you remember the most.

 

 

~LB Sedlacek is the author of the poetry collections “I’m No ROBOT,” “This Space Available,” “Words and Bones,” “The Blue Eyed Side,” “Simultaneous Submissions,” “Swim,” and “The Poet Next Door.”  Her non-fiction books include “The Poet Protection Plan” and “Electric Melt:  How to Write, Publish, Read Walt Whitman and Survive as a Writer and Poet).  Her short story collection is entitled “Four Thieves of Vinegar & Other Short Stories.”  She writes poetry reviews for  www.thepoetrymarket.com  You can find out more:  www.lbsedlacek.com