The Fire People: A Collection of British Black and Asian Poetry by Lemn Sissay

Years ago, my partner encouraged me to buy the anthology The Best American Poetry 2021. I loved that collection and found in it so many resonant works. In that vein, when my partner took a trip to the U.K., she brought me back this gift: The Fire People: A Collection of British Black and Asian Poetry edited by Lemn Sissay.

The editing of this collection has, in some ways, a much broader scope in that it includes multiple poems by the same authors. For instance, Jackie Kay, Shamshad Khan, and Lemn Sissay are granted the space for four poems each, while Kadija Sesay and Koye Oyedeji have only one poem each. In other ways, the collection has a tighter focus.

A number of the poems reflect similar topics. There are a number of poems about familial and ancestral connection, food and traditions, racism and injustice, and modern culture for racialized people. For example, from a content perspective, the poem “Ajax” by Patience Agbabi, is a lengthier poem about a drug-fueled clubbing experience. From a stylistic standpoint, there’s a distinct focus on expressiveness and informality. The poems often read like slam poems or avant-garde bombasticism. For example, “CigArs & WHitE StAr LiLLys” by Mallissa Read makes use of text speak, random capitalization, and unusual spacing to push the limits of language and Linton Kwesi Johnson’s “Reggae fi May Ayim” offers phonetic spellings of a Jamaican accent. The collection also includes the poet Tricky, a rapper and producer whose poems have a distinct rhyming quality—the blend of music and poetry comes across pretty clearly here and elsewhere, as the collection as a whole has a generally playful voice, making use of puns and associative leaps. 

I was hoping that someone in the collection would incite in me a new poetic obsession. While there were some poets that I liked (Jackie Kay stands out in that respect), and a few stand-out pieces by a smattering of poets, I think I built the collection up in my head too much based on my experience with the American poetry collection. I liked it, but I wouldn’t say I loved it.

Regardless, it is never a bad thing to explore different parts of the world through literature and to open yourself to the possibility of connecting with other voices.

Happy reading!