Sarah Kay

Sarah Kay, in collaboration with illustrator Sophia Janowitz, releases her debut collection of poetry featuring work from the first decade of her career. Her poems celebrate family, love, travel, and unlikely romance between inanimate objects.

No Matter the Wreckage

lerie

“but getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.”

“leaving is an easy art to learn. but the advanced steps—the pirouettes and arabesques are difficult to master.”

“it does not matter how long we have been kept in cages. it does not matter how strong your gravity is. we were always meant to fly.”

“you have taken to wearing around your father’s hand-me-down anger. i wish that you wouldn’t.”

“i was not born with enough fuel. my anger often melts into sadness, it will just disintegrate into shame or fear, my clenched teeth release into chatter.”

with the right sword and shield, we think we can fend off anger, fear, and hatred. 

if our legs are strong enough, we think we can outrun age, loss, and death.”

“somewhere in between then and now i learned that every move you make echoes outwards from your body like ripples on the ocean from a skipping stone. it is what has taught me that karma is as tangible as the taste of seawater.”

“some people read palms to tell your future, i read hands to tell your past. each scar marks a story worth telling. each callused palm, each cracked knuckle, is a broken bottle, a missed punch, a rusty nail, years in a factory.”

“there are so many things i would tell you if i thought that you would listen and so many more you would tell me if you believed i would understand. i hope you know that you were never meant to wear my shadow.”

“i don’t think i actually remember this day. i don’t think the scene in my head is real—it must instead be the retelling of the story that i have memorized and rehearsed—that my mind has filled in the gaps.

and yet, it would explain why, twenty-one years later, we can feel the phantom hurt inside each other; how our pains align themselves in symmetry, or in complement, like mirror selves.”

“she glows as she glides past me, tosses her hair like she has all the answers, and i wonder if i will ever be a woman like that. that summer, i learn how to wish on stars.”

“in new york, when a tree dies, nobody mourns that it was cut down in its prime. nobody counts the rings, notifies the loved ones. there are other trees.

we can always squeeze in one more. mind the tourists. it’s a nice place to visit, but i wouldn’t wanna live there.”

Mal 

all I can think about is how I should be outside living.

all I can do is notice all there is to write about.

When I read about love, I think I should be out loving.

When I love, I think I need to read more.

On the mornings when my brother’s tired muscles

held to the pillow, my father used to tell him,

For every moment you aren’t playing basketball,

So I have learned to shape the words thank you

with my first breath each morning, my last breath every night.

When the last breath comes, at least I will know I was thankful

for all the places I was so sure I was not supposed to be.

all the loves I held, all the words I wrote.

I will be exactly where I am supposed to be.

Return my right hand to the first boy who held it,

buried under photographs of my grandfather.

Return it to my mother. It has always been hers.

Return the poetry to my first-grade teacher.

Apologize for the time I went snooping through her desk.

Return the journals to the traveling salesman,

If there is any music left, you can untie it from my throat.

All the loose skin, return it to the sun.

Return the pads of my feet to the tree in the front yard.

Let the one who loves me make a pillow of my hair.

And in case there is an empty stomach, in case an empty womb—

give these to the women made of ambulances.

Give it to the sirens’ scream, the flashing lights.

let them use the womb to nurse a tiny tulip to this earth.

Let it be a home for a mouse to crawl inside of.

Return this last place to the swift birds,

NO WORDS.. I am in love with these words and this book and each page.

I start quickly becoming part of your past.

But in that instant, I get to share a part of your present. 

I just cannot express how much I'm loving this book. The poetry is immaculate; I think I'm falling in love with her words.

how many times I said yes and yes and yes

and I didn’t say no I didn’t I never did

never mine only the walls that didn’t tumble

tori 👻

One of the best things I've read this year so far. Wow.

Arihant Verma

I started reading this book after watching Saray Kay's commencement speech titled 
  What we build
. I was amazed by things put so forthrightly in the manner of conversion of a thought into words. That particular process isn't easy for human beings. Thoughts are sorta always approximately translated into words. But this! Made paintings and photographs of the thoughts through words, so that it was easier to relate to that same feeling that she wrote a poem with. She's coming to Bangalore, and I'm going to see her host National Poetry Slam, India!

Annika Arguemore

I love the way she writes; the balance of imagery, cleverness, and relatability.

Katherine Yang

Passionate and so so gentle. Lovely illustrations too! thankful @Angela ☺️

Addie 🌻

managed to read this on my breaks at work / when we were quiet and I really enjoyed it !

Arturo Hernández

Short collection of poems. It’s profound at points, trying to explain the humanity behind her parents, her brother and herself. It talks about sea, relationships and history before her. A real nice read 👌🏼

linda

I found out about Sarah Kay because of her TED talk, and her speech is definitely one I have revisited many times over the years. I saw this book pop up on my Goodreads suggestions, so I just decided to read it on a whim.

Kay is whimsical, funny, brilliant - it was cool to read her poetry. I guess maybe I was looking for a poetry collection that is more serious, but I wish her poems hit deeper. There was no narrative. At certain points, I felt like Kay was unwilling be reflective or critical. 

I liked ‘B,’ ‘The Type,’ and ‘Dragons.’ Those felt empowering. They remind me a bit of the Lorde and Lana del Rey songs I enjoy listening to. 

Here are some lines I loved:
- “I will leave pennies in your pockets,
postage stamps of superheroes
in between the pages of your books,
sugar packets on your kitchen counter.
I will Hansel and Gretel you home.”
- “I was not born with enough fuel. My anger
often melts into sadness, it will just
disintegrate into shame or fear, my
clenched teeth release into chatter...
There is a beast in my veins that was birthed by my
father. It is quiet, it sleeps through most
nights. Tonight, sir, my tail twitches in
the darkest caves. Be careful, darling.
Your footsteps land heavy here. Your
racket will wake the dragons.”
- “You forget
that words are sometimes used for things
other than filling emptiness.”
- “Know you are the type of woman
who is looking for a place to call yours.
Let the statues crumble.
You have always been the place.
You are a woman who can build it yourself.
You were born to build.”

This summer, for me, has been about learning the value of forgiving (especially myself); learning the difference between loneliness and solitude; learning that it is ok to be anger, even though anger is an emotion that I had never allowed myself to acknowledge in the past. This book made me reflect on my personal growth.

Tia Malt 

this forever remains my favourite set of poems

Sarah Kay has been one of my favourite spoken word poets for a really long time. However, this was the first time I read this collection of her poems. Some of these I’ve read before or have seen Sarah perform live. All of these are so beautiful and intimately honest. I know this is a collection I will be rereading and going back to for years to come. Some of my favourites this time were: B, Private Parts, And Found, Ghost Ship, The Type, and Paws.

taryn

Ellie Younger

Sarah Kay is a genius. This book is full of love and loss, all the while empowering me. She is knowledgeable and just.

Top selling poet Sarah Kay releases her debut collection of work from the first decade of her career. Following the success of her breakout poem, "B," No Matter the Wreckage presents readers with new and beloved work that showcases Kay's skill for celebrating family, love, travel, history, and unlikely love affairs between inanimate objects ("Toothbrush to the Bicycle Tire"). Both fresh and wise, Kay's poetry allows readers to join in on her journey of discovering herself and the world around her. - 2011 TED speaker (recording has been viewed 3 million times online) - First book, "B" was ranked #1 Bestselling Poetry Book on Amazon - Featured on HBO, American Public Radio, Huffington Post, CNN.com, etc. - Founder and Co-Director of Project VOICE

honey

absolutely a wonder, a collection that everyone hold close to their heart and soul. highly recommend. 

Melody Izard

Nice enough - but I'm poetry challenged and it was not enough for me. Some good lines though.

Nikolay Bachiyski

Spoken vulnerability of many types, without drama, with a smile. Watch or listen, don’t read.

Audrey Cashmore

I am a sucker for Kay’s poetry. Her grasp of language and rhythm blend to create a fantastic book of poetry everyone can find beauty and comfort in. 

Alyssa Wilson

Salonie Powar

Sarah

20 billion stars out of 5 for me.
Wow... just wow. I have no words to describe how much this book hit me. 
These poems inspired me, they took my breath away, they made my heart race, they brought tears to my eyes. They made me think, they made me heal.
I'm really not exaggerating. They spoke to me in a way that no poems ever did.
I felt a true and raw connection between the poet and me.
And maybe it's because we have the same name? I don't truly know if this is the silly reason why I've felt like those feelings were my feelings.
But I deeply loved this.
Thank you Sarah, for writing this book. I will be forever grateful.

Hayley 📖🌈💜🌸

It only took me 6 months, but I finished this. 
And it was lovely.

Gabriela Roxana 

I didn't like this book. At all. I'm so disappointed I'm actually shocked. It's like I read a different book from everyone else. And I so much wanted to love this one, I'm feeling so down.

No Matter the Wreckage

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