Swimming into the Light

Eugenia Sojka teaches English at the Memorial University of
Newfoundland.

This collection of poems powerfully chronicles Souaid’s longing for a
child (“Infertility,” “Three Sentences,” “Prognosis”) and
her painful journey to motherhood. Her emotions range from sadness and
desperation to anger at the creator: “God / damn it, give me one, just
one good reason. why I can’t have a baby” (“Under This Moon”).

The book’s epigraph articulates its principal concern: “The
childless woman [and the] mother are a false polarity” (Adrienne
Rich). Several poems recount Souaid’s journey to her native Lebanon to
adopt a baby. The book ends with touching images of the mystery of birth
(“Birth Poem”) and the bonding that occurs between mother and child
(“Alex at 2,” “Connecting”).

Souaid writes in a deliciously fresh and original style. Exquisite
imagery and irony are two hallmarks of these deeply personal and closely
observed poems.