Afterland by Mai Der Vang confronts the Secret War, a seldom spoken of operation to arm the Hmong people of Laos by Americans to use them for fighting in Vietnam. When the war ended, Laos was left in turmoil, America pulled it's support and Vang's family fled. Vang works to memorialize the experiences that are rarely talked about. The poems explore traditions and rituals that have been lost and the losing, gaining, and learning new understandings of language. The poems seem to be seeking understanding of what happened and what is left and what will continue on. These poems use mythology and magic as well as stories of her family and her own California existence to show how cultures and memories permeate through generations. Notes and translations of Hmong words are included in the back.
You can buy it here: https://www.amazon.com/Afterland-Poems-Mai-Vang/dp/1555977707
Visit Mai Der Vang's website here: https://maidervang.com/bio/
And read more : https://www.radarpoetry.com/meditation-of-the-lioness
http://waterstonereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/I-the-Body-Laos....pdf
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