Warsan Shire
Warsan Shire is a British-Somali poet and writer renowned for her evocative exploration of themes like identity, displacement, and womanhood. Born in Kenya in 1988 and raised in London, Shire gained international acclaim with her debut poetry collection, "Teaching My Mother How to Give Birth." Her compelling work has been featured in Beyoncé's visual album "Lemonade," affirming her status as a powerful voice in contemporary poetry.
Book summaries for books written by Warsan Shire
Quotes
I belong deeply to myself.
I have my mother's mouth and my father's eyes; on my face they are still together.
You can't make homes out of human beings.
No one leaves home unless home is the mouth of a shark.
I am a lover without a lover.
You are terrifying and strange and beautiful, something not everyone knows how to love.
I locked myself in your bathroom and you told me that it was the safest place in the whole damn house.
You cannot make homes out of human beings, someone should have already told you that.
When love arrives, say, 'Welcome, make yourself comfortable.'
Give your daughters difficult names. Give your daughters names that command the full use of tongue.
I am not cruel, only truthful. The eye of a little god, four-cornered.
Your daughter's face is a small riot, her hands are a civil war, a refugee camp behind each ear, a body littered with ugly things.