Splinters are Children of Wood by Leia Penina Wilson is intense and raw poetry. This book is the winner of the Ernest Sandeen Prize in Poetry. Each poem describes what it means to be a girl and the poet coming from the Midwest herself, I can totally understand what kind of conditions she must have seen around her that influenced her to write these beautiful poems. It won't be exaggerating to say the world has a unique way of shaping the girls.

Samoan myths are mentioned in these poems in a unique way, thus, carrying an ode to the poet's roots. Also, the poems are punctuated in the most beautiful and intricate way I've ever read. They are almost like paintings. I read each poem more than once just to enjoy the depth of them.
There are three different chapters in the book. There are some beautiful lines, like:"I cut my own throat close my own wound wear my own night descended blood."
"What dream what maiden what full name""how do the promise of heaven and the brokenness of earth correspond -- re: it will rain tonight."
Leia Penina Wilson is an afakasi Samoan poet from the Midwest. I am so much impacted by her poems. Ms. Wilson has definitely increased my love for poetry through this book. The darkness in these poems touched my soul in the most beautiful way.

I thank Edelweiss Plus for introducing me to literature from countries all over the world. I'm so much in love with the diversity I find in various books and yet, they touch my soul in spite of the different language, culture and traditions.
Thank you University of Notre Dame Press for sending the advanced uncorrected page proof to my from across the other end of the world. It means so much. ( )