Star 67 #1
I have a preview copy of this nicely put together poetry chapbook, and the blurb reads.. “Crank calls, cat calls, call-outs and close calls are just part of the make-up of this brave and surreal collection that examines the enactment and denial of American violence. Gina will drag you through the dirt and you’ll thank her for the enlightenment.” (Freddy La Force, editor-in-chief, Vegetarian Alcoholic Press.) This is indeed a powerful and beautiful collection of poetry. Beginning with echoes of the classic ’90s horror movie Scream, we are led down dial up corridors, through high school halls, locker room lust, intimacies (both sought-after and forced upon), under flying bullets and out onto the boardwalk “standing in the rain, gripping a busted umbrella, getting ready for the Tsunami to hit.” Trons’s words are lithe and evocative as she describes sexual violence; thoughts of destruction; and physical violence through school shootings and brutal, destructive fantasy. There is a minimal feel to her work, which is not to say that it is sparse. More accurately her words are precise in a way that even though I sometimes didn’t feel like I understood what was being said, I could feel the weight of truth that only comes through authenticity. This collection of poems is a powerful reminding statement that all of us who survive trauma are indelibly marked by our experiences and left wondering how to make sense of them. The print quality is lovely, and the cover is cleanly illustrated in lush pink and purple colours. I will read this collection again and I know that I will find new lines that I love.