FOREST of NOISE
by Mosab Abu Toha
Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20 on Bluesky)
There are books that tell stories, and then there are books that pull you into the very marrow of their reality. Forest of Noise by Mosab Abu Toha is the latter, a collection of poetry that does not merely speak of loss, displacement, and resilience but makes you inhabit them.
Recently longlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize, this book is an unflinching, urgent testament to the experience of living under occupation and the enduring power of art in the face of violence.
Abu Toha writes with a voice that is at once deeply personal and universally resonant. His words carry the weight of a people’s history, yet they land with the intimacy of whispered confessions. The collection's title, Forest of Noise, evokes both the deafening chaos of war and the eerie silence that follows destruction, setting the tone for poetry that oscillates between despair and defiance.
But this work does not merely catalogue suffering. The poetry also sings with resistance. There are moments where language itself becomes an act of defiance, words wielded like stones against silence and erasure. In a world that often demands his silence, he refuses, filling the void with verse. His work echoes the tradition of Mahmoud Darwish, but it is distinctly his own, modern, raw, and unrelenting in its search for truth.
What makes Forest of Noise truly exceptional is its ability to hold complexity. There is rage, certainly, but also tenderness. There is mourning, but also an aching love for the land, for the people who continue to plant trees even as bombs fall.
In one particularly striking poem, Abu Toha writes of how their 'lives freeze' every time they heard a bomb falling from an F-16 or an F-35, you can feel the fear emanating from the pages. You see, Forest of Noise is not just a collection of poems; it's a chronicle of survival, identity, and the unyielding spirit of a people. Abu Toha's voice resonates with authenticity, offering readers an intimate portrayal of life in Gaza. This collection is a poignant reminder of the power of poetry to illuminate the human condition, making it a deserving contender for the Dylan Thomas Prize.
Abu Toha’s poetry is a rare thing: both deeply rooted in a specific place and time, and yet expansive enough to resonate with anyone who has ever known loss, exile, or the need to fight for a voice.
Find out more about the Dylan Thomas Prize here: https://www.swansea.ac.uk/dylan-thomas-prize/
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