Nomenclatures of Invisibility

Mahtem Shiferraw's Nomenclatures of Invisibility explores the collective experiences inherited through deeply-rooted ancestry, tracing patterns of movement and migration, sorrow and invisibility, and the resulting complicated notions of home. She writes unapologetically against erasure and invisibility, creating a space that holds grief lovingly and tends to the wounds held and held in the endlessly-traveling body. Her poems dismantle the empire's sterile use of language, both historical and present, and build a home within them, naming those who exist within them out of invisibility and into the radiant light.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 88 pages
Publication date: 08 June 2023
Publisher: BOA Editions, Limited

Through a personal, historical, and political lens, Mahtem Shiferraw explores the collective experiences inherited through deeply rooted ancestry, tracing patterns of movement and migration, sorrow, and invisibility, and the resulting complicated notions of home. In Nomenclatures of Invisibility, Shiferraw invites us to carve out space for the multitudes of selves we carry when we migrate across boundaries of body, language, and land. With momentum, she gives name to everything in her path, from the longing that comes with migration to her beloved eucalyptus tree, blurring physical and temporal borders, paying homage to ancestors past, present, and future. Shiferraw writes unapologetically against erasure and invisibility, instead creating a space that holds grief lovingly, tending to the wounds held and held in the endlessly traveling body. Brilliant with abundance and texture, Shiferraw's poems dismantle the empire's sterile use of language, both historical and present.

In Nomenclatures of Invisibility, Mahtem Shiferraw builds a home within her poems, attentively naming those who exist within them out of invisibility and into the radiant light: "We walk / in unison too: our backs bending at once, / our arms breaking, our abdomens / kicked into silence, thighs bleeding. Through / this, I ask; am I still lit? And they, again /... what else would you be?"

Shiferraw's poetry is a testament to the power of language to create a sense of belonging and connection, even in the face of invisibility and isolation. Through her meticulous attention to detail and her ability to evoke emotion and empathy, she invites us to see the world through a different lens, to recognize the beauty and complexity of the human experience, and to celebrate the diversity of our identities.

Weight: 158g
Dimension: 152 x 228 x 9 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781950774906