The Boneheap in the Lion’s Den bookworm

The Boneheap in the Lion s Den is a collection of poems about trauma both personal and as a medical concept It is the winner of the Press 53 2023 Award for Poetry The author s experiences working in the trauma unit of a large urban hospital are told frankly with blood bullets and tears Nothing here is too hard to talk about and nobody is too hurt to be loved Welcome to the lion s den you ll learn to love it here The Boneheap in the Lion s DenI enjoyed reading this collection of poems I am always interested in poems about the body As a medical student Maya certainly has experience in writing about the body I appreciate the difficulty and the soul sucking emotional pain certain healthcare providers must go through For the most part i did not find the poems all that engaging I like the first poem Moratorium A very shocking and powerful poem Great opening poem I can definitely relate the to poem Psalm for My Body especially the first line that reads There are contracts between genealogy and fate that I was not present to sign I will second that sentiment Oh and I love the line Dear body be brave from the poem The Body Only Speaks Her Own Language I do love her ending poem as well Trauma Surgeon Ars Poetica Poetry An absolutely stunning arresting and thoughtful poetry collection Written by a medical student and trauma surgery researcher who bore witness to the toll of gun violence on the St Louis community and the medical professionals trying to save them The Boneheap in the Lion s Den puts words to the unspeakable The author when describing the collection stated The ethos of this book is saying what we mean exactly and this is particularly apparent in the opening poem Moratorium as well as Caveat to Moratorium and In Defense of the ICD System They are beautiful in their precision and devastation Additional highlights include Hurting Instructions and Soon I cannot wait to see what she publishes next I will be first in line to read it Poetry I can t believe how incredible this work of poetry is I am honored to have known Sorini since birth Getting a glimpse into her experiences through poetry is probably one of the most powerful experiences I ve had I desperately want to discuss her book the next time we hang out and will have to follow her closely for upcoming events The poetry was accessible honest researched and made really fascinating connections It s clear there s so much heart craft and care in this body of work I ll be recommending it to anyone willing to grapple with tough subjects from the lens of Maya Poetry This debut poetry collection is not for the squeamish among us Inspired by the poet s experiences as a medical student and trauma surgery researcher these poems examine the physicality of life with raw bloody vulnerability I especially enjoyed the ones that were patient centered such as Eavesdropping on the Dead and The Lies In a healthcare system that often makes patients feel less like people and like cases to be gotten through the poet s honoring of their stories is a necessary reminder of the importance of empathy in medicine Sorini does not shy away from the discomfort of pain death or grief and so neither does her reader together we bear witness to the many lives that mattered enough to fill these pages I had the pleasure of being Maya s former classmate at Wash U and look forward to following her career both in poetry and medicine A big thanks to Maya and Press 53 for sending me a copy to read Poetry