A New Kind of Tongue

As a collection, Genevieve Betts' A New Kind of Tongue includes poems that are sometimes quirky, sometimes lyrical, sometimes edgy, and sometimes humorous. Language-our understanding of it, its regionality, and its many intricacies-is a main theme rooted within the book's strong sense of place. Between the east coast, specifically Brooklyn, and the southwest, specifically Santa Fe, comparisons are made, narratives are shared, and observations are acknowledged. A series of centos is also braided throughout this collection that exclusively uses language from outside texts such as Haruki Murakami's Kafka on the Shore, Tom Robbins' Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, David Mitchell's Ghostwritten, and Angela Carter's short story "The Bloody Chamber." Betts reshapes the language of these texts to speak her own voice through the voices of others. This voice and her lens takes a feminist perspective with subject matter that includes family, work, the political climate, and other aspects of life, revealing hidden truths alongside shared truths of these recently-lived experiences.