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Book Review: Old Monarch by Courtney Marie Andrews
Courtney Marie Andrews is a Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter from Arizona. OLD MONARCH is her debut poetry collection.
It will come as no surprise to anyone who reads this collection that Andrews 2020 Grammy nomination (Old Flowers) was in the Best Americana Album category. With images of rocking chairs, railroad overalls, desert sands, a Papa with his cowboy hat, and mentions of Frank Sinatra and Montana, OLD MONARCH is Americana. In many ways, the collection feels like a road trip across America.
The land that Andrews speaks of includes immigrants and indigenous people. You get the sense that they are truly seen by each other due to living on the same land and sharing experiences that have led to loneliness, grief, and nostalgia.
“Desire and longing are the only shoes you need to climb mountains.”
The title comes from a metaphor of the narrator to a monarch butterfly that flies away only to continue into the unknown, and to search for someone who sees her for who she is. The poet also uses the land to show how nature can keep a person company when they long for human touch.
“Begging the dead for therapy… show me how to be braver than the grandmothers before me.”