Raghad Jabbar Zarkani grew up in Iraq, survived a war and now lives in the U.S. These are her poems.
Divided into three parts; Part I Contains poems of her life in Iraq during wartime, her childhood experiences of Saddam Hussein and the way people treat her as an immigrant. Part II has poems that are more spiritual and metaphysical, exploring souls, life, God and the nature of bring. Part III is about magic and imagination, and provides insight into how she sees the world, the little things that inspire her and awaken her contemplation of the immense.
What drew me to this book of poems was the perspective of the author as an Iraqi. I’ve read accounts of the Iraq war, but rarely from a native, and I was interested to see it from her point of view. I didn’t anticipate how deep this book would be, how the subject matter would transcend war and delve into the contemplation of humanity, our similarities and differences, God and spirit and the magic within ourselves.
This book of poems is worth buying in print form, as it is a volume you will return to and contemplate. My favorite poem is Love. It’s only two lines, but I haven’t stopped thinking about it since I read it.
I award Stranger Paths…
Click here to buy Stranger Paths for $4.19 ebook and $9.99 print book on Amazon.
Iseult Murphy 
Sounds really good, I have been neglecting poetry in recent years, must have a look at this collection
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I started reading poetry again this year, and I’ve found some wonderful books.
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