Commune Magazine Reviews Wendy Trevino's Cruel Fiction

At Commune, Xarí Rivera Maya reviews Wendy Trevino's Cruel Fiction (Commune Editions, 2019). "It’s rare to read poetry that concerns itself with the particulars of how to get things done," they write. "Trevino’s poetry does not ruminate on metaphysical concepts, nor does it approximate heady political theory." More:

...Instead it works out the complications and obstacles of fighting back, and it does this in terms recognizable to ordinary people. In a nod to Diane di Prima’s Revolutionary Letters, Trevino includes a georgic poem in her collection titled “Revolutionary Letter,” which sets forth some practical advice for revolutionary struggle: “waste as little energy as possible / fighting people who stand in the way, which is to say don’t talk / don’t argue, just get them out of the way of the fight you came for.” In other words, don’t waste your time waiting for people to change, don’t wait for people to agree with you to do what you need to do. If you spend too much time worrying about what other people think, the action will suffer; in fact, it might never even happen. In another poem, we are reminded that words cannot on their own do what needs to get done: “I can see why / People have compared [writing poetry] to dance, but have you ever / Danced in the streets? It’s better not to do it by yourself.” Doing things by ourselves doesn’t get us to revolution. Her use of the second-person point of view in “Revolutionary Letter” speaks directly to the reader. It gives the impression of a “we” being created, materializing through our growing affinity for its expressed politics.

Read the full review at Commune.