book review: milk and honey
Image from rupikaur.com
Hello there ❁
今日はhoneyhandsとして初めてのブックレビュー！
It's very first book review post since we launched honeyhands.
"milk and honey" by rupi kaur
My rate: ★★★★★
(My goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/xxhikxx)
この本は彼女のポエム集で、日本ではポエムって聞くと少しどこか照れくさくて読みにくい存在なのでは？私はアメリカの大学のライティングの授業でポエムを学ぶまではそう思って、一度も手につけたことがなかったの。だけど、学んでいくうちに言葉の美しさに魅了されて、初めて買ったこのポエム集は今まで買った本の中で一番美しいものだなと思うので今回は紹介しようと思ったの！残念ながら日本語版は出版されていないのだけれど、特に英語の勉強をしている人やフェミニズムに興味のある人に読んでほしいな。
This book is a collection of poems. When we hear "poem," we feel awkward and sounds very cliche in Japan. I used to feel like that, but I took a writing course while I was in the U.S. and the amazing professor made us write a poem one time. I learned how words can be so beautiful and powerful from her teaching in the course. Since then, I love reading not only novels but also poems. milk and honey was my very first book of poems that I bought. And it turned out the most beautiful book I've ever owned. So, I wanted to share with you guys!
『milk and honeyは暴力、虐待、愛、喪失、女性らしさの経験。この本は４つの章に分かれていて、それぞれ違った目的を意味しているの。違った痛みの対処。違った心の痛みの癒し。milk and honeyはあなたを人生で最も苦しい瞬間へ連れて行って、その中の甘い優しさを見つけるたびに連れて言ってくれる。甘い優しさはあなたが見つけようとすればどこにでもあるんだもの。』
"‘milk and honey’ is the experience of violence. abuse. love. loss. femininity. the book is divided into four chapters. each chapter serves a different purpose. deals with a different pain. heals a different heartache. milk and honey takes readers through a journey of the most bitter moments in life and finds sweetness in them because there is sweetness everywhere if you are just willing to look."
この本は、使われている言葉や文が美しいだけではなくて、何も隠されていない、そのままの彼女の言葉が綴られていて、一ページめくっていくごとにふつふつと湧いてくる様々な感情は飾っていなくて、リアルで、読み応えのある一冊。"milk and honey"は、豊かさ、豊富さ、富という意味を持っていて、まさにこの本にぴったりなタイトル。the hurting (痛み)、the loving (愛のある)、the breaking(壊れた)、the healing(癒し)の4つの章にわかれていて、その中でお気に入りをいくつか紹介するね。ポエムなので日本語訳をして、そのポエム自体の美しさを失いたくないので、代わりにどういう意味なのか一言説明をつけてみるね。
This book is rustically beautiful. There's nothing transfigured in this book. Everything is so real and each page you turn, you'll be attracted by the words she put together with so many kinds of feelings and emotions. "milk and honey" means richness, wealth, or plentiful, and I felt that is perfect title for this book. It has four chapters: the hurting, the loving, the breaking, and the healing. And I'll share a few of my favorites from each chapter. I don't wanna translate to Japanese since it's a collection of English poems so I'll add some opinions or views about each poem with my words.
the hurting
これは『無理やり』させられているようにも聞こえる一つのポエム。指でやられていても、何も感じていない女性に満足そうに『気持ちいい？』と聞く男性に対して、まるでリハーサルしているかのように素早く『yes』と答える女性の気持ちが書かれているよ。飾り気のないリアルなポエム。
I like this one because this is real experience that anyone could relate. Well, most of the poems in her book are relatable for everyone. There's a guy fingering you and asking you how you feel with his own satisfaction, and I've experienced this before like saying "hey it feels amazing" and right after I said I thought "did I sound real?" But he wouldn't realize because he is busy with making himself feeling good miserably.
the loving
これはひとそれぞれ感じ取る奥深くの意味は違うかもしれないけれど、あたしはその人のことが好きすぎて、触られてもいないのにまるで触られたように夢中になっているのかな。と思ったよ。
I think everyone takes this poem slightly different so I'm not sure everyone thinks the same way I felt but when I read this, I thought of the person who I really love and he could touch me without being next to me because I'm crazy about him dreamily and almost felt like he's touching not my skin but my heart.
これはあたしのこの本の中で一番好きなポエムかも。ざっくり言うと、 相手の人がまるで森が燃えていたような彼女を柔らかい流れる水に変えてしまったというポエム。つまりその相手の愛情や扱い方で彼女はまるで別人になれたというもの。
I think this is my most favorite one from the book. It's incredible to encounter someone who makes you feel like this way. Maybe I was a mess, but he turned me into something good. It's like meeting someone who can make you love yourself which is so lovely.
the breaking
誰かといることで自分のことを好きでいられなくなるなら去った方がいい。もし一緒に居続けたらどんどん自分を好きでいれなくなる。彼のことは好きだけど、これ以上一緒にいたら自分をどんどん好きじゃなくなる、そんな自分への愛を大切にする、今のあたしたちに必要なセルフラブポエム。
Even if you're so in love with the person, but the person makes you feel shitty about yourself then that's no good for you to stay with the person. You need to give up one or another: less love for yourself with staying with him, or love yourself fully from leaving him. This is one of the hardest things but this is very important.
ざっくりいえば、相手と寝ても彼女はまつたく濡れなかったっていうこと。濡れなかったり、性欲がなかったりするのは、女性の身体に起こることで、(相手にどれだけ興味がなくても、ものすごく好きだったとしても) あなたはあたしに合った人じゃないわっていうこと。
Honestly, is there any girl who never experienced this!? I've experienced SO MANY TIMES. If you sleep with someone, you can't get wet either you love the person or not. It happens. And this is the way to know the person is right for you or not sometimes too.
the healing
これもセルフラブを訴えるポエム。自分を愛することで、他の人に自分のことを愛してもらうことを教えることができるということ。自分のことをまず好きになれないで、他の人に愛してほしいっていうのは難しいというメッセージ。
This book taught me how to love myself and how important to love myself more. And this is one of them. If you can't love yourself, how can you tell people to love you? Before you love someone, or let someone love you, you need to love yourself first. Then others love you in the way you want.
彼女の言葉はまっすぐで飾っていなくて、たくさんの女性に勇気や自信を与えてくれるそんな一冊。恋愛や自分の気持ち、自分の愛し方に悩んだときに読んでみたら、きっと何かインスピレーションをもらえるかも。あたしはもう３度読み返して、まだこれからもずっと手元に持って、読みかえしたいと思う一冊なので、ぜひ機会があったらみんなにも読んでほしいな☺︎
Her words are not beautified, and they're so straight forward. I'm pretty sure many women will be helped by reading this book. Loving, heartbreaking, self-love and more you need to know, there are so many inspiration for those feelings and emotions. I've read three times now, and I still wanna keep this around me and read again and again. Hope you'll love as much as I do! Let me know what you think if you've read already ;)
xx Hikari
Source:
https://www.rupikaur.com/milkandhoney/