Teaching My Mother How to Give Birth (mouthmark series)

What elevates 'teaching my mother how to give birth', what gives the poems their disturbing brilliance, is Warsan Shire's ability to give
simple, beautiful eloquence to the veiled world where sensuality lives
in the dominant narrative of Islam; reclaiming the more nuanced truths
of earlier times – as in Tayeb Salih's work – and translating to the
realm of lyric the work of the likes of Nawal El Saadawi. As Rumi said,
“Love will find its way through all languages on its own”; in 'teaching
my mother how to give birth', Warsan's debut pamphlet, we witness the unearthing of a poet who finds her way through all preconceptions to
strike the heart directly. 
About the author: Warsan Shire is a Kenyan-born Somali poet and writer who is based in London. Born in 1988, she is an artist and activist who uses her work to document narratives of journey and trauma.
Warsan has read her work internationally, including recent readings in
South Africa, Italy and Germany, and her poetry has been translated into
Italian, Spanish and Portuguese. You will find her on twitter at: @Warsan_shire