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Book Reviews

These poems by Michal Mahgerefteh comprise a moving memoir which explores and examines the poet's connection to her family and heritage. Many of her poems are steeped in the traditions of family and rituals and blessings; others are rich with the imagery, scents and smells of the Middle East. Mahgerefteh weaves her poems through a forest of symbols, always seeking the light, the fig, the almond, the olive in bloom. The book ends with a deeply moving re-construction of the Book of Psalm - a final stunning affirmation of the Jewish spirit. 

     Michael Glasser, Poet Laureat of Maryland

Braiding together a sensual world of gardens, spices and the warmth of familial love within a world of suicide bombers, war, and intolerance, Mahgerefteh navigates some pretty rocky terrain in In My Bustan. With supreme bravery Mahgerefteh tackles difficult subjects; the pain of illness, lost childhood and the death of family. In the end hope, dreams and love prevail in this collection, where life's complexities and difficulties are wrestled and put to rest.

     Joan Gelfand, President, The Women's National Book Association

To begin reading Michal Mahgerefteh's first collection of poetry, In My Bustan, is to enter a world suffused with Jewish tradition and the lyricism of ancient tongues. Her poems are a feast of sensuous imagery. Diversity is a hallmark of this poet's work. Almost no two poems look alike, and yet reading each, one feels a rightness in the architecture on the page. There is a movement that shapes Mahgerefteh's strong collection. In My Bustan goes from addressing her heritage, her family, fanning out to worldly concerns for peace, closing with spiritual poems, many that talk directly to God, seeking guidance. Just so, poem by poem, the reader is enriched by reading In My Bustan.

     Jane Ellen Glasser, Poetry Editor, Lady Jane Miscellany Literary Journal

When you open this collection, you are opening a jewel-box. The reader is drawn into the soft-spoken, elegant collection which is written with a psalm-like beauty. Michal¡¯s is a voice of calmness, her poems are reverent, bittersweet. There is a yearning throughout, for childhood, for health, for family, for homeland, for tradition, for peace. More and more In My Bustan reveals a faith unswerving, which renders those of us less-believers, envious of its purity, even innocence. Michal is not searching; she has found, has accepted, knows. Her poetry is almost a whisper, almost leaves the reader gasping, shivering, in its loveliness. Each poem, without exception, shines, haunts, touches the soul. We too yearn for such a solidity of faith, such rich traditional experiences. The last part of In My Bustan is the diamond of the collection. Here Michal recites Psalms in her own quiet voice, adding a word here, there, to let us better look into her soul.

     Helen Bar-Lev, Editor-in Chief, Voices Israel Anthology   

writes Michal Mahgerefteh in one of the opening poems of this hauntingly beautiful collection. In the ensuing pages she proceeds to fill the lacuna with evocative images drawn from her Middle Eastern childhood, her tradition-steeped family, and her impressive familiarity with Jewish sources. All of this packaged in an aesthetically pleasing format, with an airy layout, a light font, and lovely calligraphy---a reflection of Mahgerefteh's recognized talents as both a poet and artist.The woman who emerges in this poetry is the epitome of womanhood, of Jewish womanhood. Her poems are suffused with love for her family, for her people. This collection abounds with unforgettable images conveyed with a passionate intensity, and illuminated by the poet's questioning, but unwavering faith. Bustan in Farsi means flower garden or orchard, and Michal Mahgerefteh's first collection, In My Bustan, appropriately offers an exotic, bountiful harvest of poems to nourish our souls.

     Ricky Rapoport Friesem, The First Prize Winner of the Writer's Digest 2007 
     International Self-Published Book Awards Competition
 

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The poems Michal has gifted the reader are intimately personal and hauntingly universal. Searing, sensitive, raw, tender, they are all surprising. The form and structure of the poems and the collected poems work in concert with her themes and images to bring the reader into close, personal contact with her extended family. Reading this book is a gentle journey to light.

     Pete Freas, Vice President, The Poetry Society of Virginia