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A Cruelty Special to Our Species

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A Cruelty Special to Our Species
AuthorEmily Jungmin Yoon
PublisherEcco Press
Publication date
September 18, 2018
Pages80
AwardsDevil's Kitchen Reading Award
ISBN978-0062843685
Preceded byOrdinary Misfortunes 
Followed byAgainst Healing: Nine Korean Poets (Translating Feminisms) 

A Cruelty Special to Our Species is the debut poetry collection by South Korean–born poet Emily Jungmin Yoon, published in 2018 by Ecco Press. It was published while Yoon was a doctoral student studying East Asian languages and civilizations at the University of Chicago. It has poems that address the history of comfort women who were exploited by Imperial Japan during World War II.[1] It won the Devil's Kitchen Reading Award for poetry and was a finalist for the Kate Tufts Discovery Award.[2][3]

Content

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The book is separated into four sections: "The Charge", "The Testimonies", "The Confessions", and "The After".[4]

Critical reception

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Publishers Weekly gave the book a starred review, stating "Yoon’s is a brave new voice that respects how the past informs the present."[5]

Critics observed Yoon's complex and multifaceted approach to the history of comfort women through poetry.[6] The New York Times said "Yoon takes up the charge of amplifying the voices of an often-overlooked history."[7] Michigan Quarterly Review said "The voices of this collection are insistent—they speak louder and louder, urging us to listen, believe, and mourn."[8] Nashville Review wrote that Yoon's debut "is rich with moments of admirable reckoning and witness, offering a study of how historical narratives might follow a speaker into shaping her own fierce, sharp lineage."[9] RHINO Poetry stated that the book both "holds fast to its tone of measured rage and sardonicism, and maintains a steady eye that demands accountability" but also "uplifts as it bears witness".[10]

The Washington Post named the book as one of the best collections to read in October of 2018, stating "Yoon’s work is compelling in part because it shows the importance of understanding history and its enduring impact."[11]

References

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  1. ^ Bauld, Andrew; Wang, Jack (2018-12-31). "PhD student Emily Jungmin Yoon releases debut poetry collection | University of Chicago". news.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
  2. ^ Buerck, Brooke. "Devil's Kitchen Literary Festival to be held by SIU". The Daily Egyptian. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
  3. ^ "Winners & Finalists". Tufts Poetry Awards. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
  4. ^ Yoon, Emily Jungmin (September 18, 2018). A Cruelty Special to Our Species: Poems. Ecco Press. ISBN 978-0062843685.
  5. ^ "A Cruelty Special to Our Species by Emily Jungmin Yoon". www.publishersweekly.com. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
  6. ^ Smith, Jessica (2020-01-31). "Emily Jungmin Yoon's A Cruelty Special to Our Species: Containing Anxious Ambiguity, with Peaches". Fence Digital. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
  7. ^ Fischer, Bk (December 13, 2018). "A Debut Poet Confronts the Sexual Violence of an Earlier Generation". The New York Times.
  8. ^ Huang, Jennifer. "Preservation and Perseverance: A Review of Emily Jungmin Yoon's A Cruelty Special to Our Species – Michigan Quarterly Review". sites.lsa.umich.edu. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
  9. ^ Duan, Carlina (2018-12-01). "Review: A Cruelty Special to our Species by Emily Jungmin Yoon". Nashville Review. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
  10. ^ Marshall, Maya (2018-09-05). "REVIEWS — RHINO — A Cruelty Special to our Species by Emily Jungmin Yoon Reviewed by Maya Marshall". RHINO. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
  11. ^ Lund, Elizabeth (October 10, 2018). "Ursula K. Le Guin's final poems and other best collections to read this month". The Washington Post.
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