Book Review: Poet Warrior (poetry and prose by an American Poet Laureate)(OT)

Poet Warrior: A Memoir, by Joy Harjo (W. W. Norton & Company, 2021, $25, 226 pp)

"Poetry can bring rain, make someone fall in love, hold the grief of a nation." (p. 175) And that is just prose from the three-term US Poet Laureate (since 2019) and author of her autobiography, Joy Harjo. 

Accolades for the Author

Author Harjo, a member of the Muskogee (Creek) Nation from Oklahoma and the first Native American to be selected as Poet Laureate, has accrued a lifetime of accolades. With an MFA, she has taught all over the country at the college level and received many honorary degrees. She even took up the saxophone in her 40s.

Accolades for the Book

'Poet Warrior' is a fitting and fabulous title for the book released in September, with references to the term throughout. The book has been the subject of several segments on National Public Radio, including eight minutes on The Book of the Day on November 3, 2021 as well as six other mentions. Diane Rehm selected Poet Warrior as the December Book of the Month Club in a one-hour book discussion with Harjo herself on December 15. Expect other accolades to follow.

The Review

Reading six chapters in this short book, the reader follows Harjo through her childhood, early motherhood, college degrees and teaching on the college level. Throughout, the thread is learning from nature, snakes and all, and from her ancestors, in the Indian tradition.

With a mixture of both poetry and prose, Harjo has penned a very creative little book, sure to be the subject of many college English Lit courses and perhaps even book clubs. This reviewer, however, found the circuitous life story to be fascinating with some segments told after the fact - easy to follow, though. What wasn't so easy to follow was the connection between the prose and the poetry selections as well as the words in her native tongue. A liberal arts or English major will love the story while a scientist may become bored and a bit frustrated. Regardless, look for Poet Warrior to be in the news for some time to come, along with Harjo's other memoir, Crazy Brave.