Fragments

"There is a whole emotional heart punched and packed and unpacked into blues verse that explores a relationship's highs and disintegration through later coercion and assault. Lyrical with a profound melancholic vibe. Bittersweet nostalgia balanced by sharp post-trauma introspection. The best way to invite readership is through quoting melliferous-discordant lines: “Sometimes love arrives dressed as innocence.” “The stories we trusted each other with before we trusted our hands.” “Some nights don’t ask for words. They ask to be remembered.” Then, as relationships subtly alter, how: “Memory keeps both versions.” “Funny thing about control. It doesn’t arrive wearing heavy boots. It slips in quietly, disguised as compromise.” “For a little while love sounded louder than betrayal.” The crash, as words spoken hurt longer than any bruise. “The beginning disappeared. The ending never did.” Chapter Eleven, ‘My Blues Song’, is likely going to be one of the most heartfelt pieces of survival writing you might possibly read. Ann Oh has the genuine word power to share vulnerable resilience. This is a read that will linger long: from a whale watching trip, “the kind of day you secretly hope never ends,” to “pieces of paper trying to do what love never could.” "