帕特里夏·史密斯（Patricia Smith）以每一分钟的细节追踪卡特里娜飓风演变成全面毁灭的女主人。从2005年8月23日热带低气压12号发展到8月28日成为五级风暴，其“鲜红的光芒聚焦在颤抖的新月上”，再到令人心碎的后果，这些诗唤起了美国在电视上观看新奥尔良发生的恐怖。
史密斯以政客、垂死者、幸存者和飓风本身的声音为背景，关注着严重不足的救援工作，并见证了屋顶和超级穹顶上被俘的家庭。她为在圣伯纳德教区溺水的34名养老院居民发声，并回忆起他们去世后的第二天，乔治·W·布什用吉他伴奏乡村歌手马克·威利斯
牛仔在可怕的喧闹声中咧嘴一笑，
***
在第九节，一个哽咽的女人哭泣
看起来这个国家已经让我们死了。
这是一个令人难忘的提醒，诗歌仍然可以是“留下来的新闻”，鲜血炫目是走向民族疗愈的必要一步。
帕特里夏·史密斯（Patricia Smith）是之前四部诗集的作者，其中包括《全能的茶馆》（Teahouse of the全能者）、赫斯顿/赖特遗产奖（Hurston/Wright Legacy Award）和帕特森诗歌奖（Paterson poetry Prize）的获得者。创纪录的设置，全国诗歌SLAM冠军，她在电影《砰砰》，HBO系列DEF诗歌果酱，是一个频繁的贡献者哈丽特，诗歌基金会的博客。访问她的网站www.wordwoman。ws。
Blood Dazzler
In minute-by-minute detail, Patricia Smith tracks Hurricane Katrina as it transforms into a full-blown mistress of destruction. From August 23, 2005, the day Tropical Depression Twelve developed, through August 28 when it became a Category Five storm with its “scarlet glare fixed on the trembling crescent,” to the heartbreaking aftermath, these poems evoke the horror that unfolded in New Orleans as America watched it on television.
Assuming the voices of flailing politicians, the dying, their survivors, and the voice of the hurricane itself, Smith follows the woefully inadequate relief effort and stands witness to families held captive on rooftops and in the Superdome. She gives voice to the thirty-four nursing home residents who drowned in St. Bernard Parish and recalls the day after their deaths when George W. Bush accompanied country singer Mark Willis on guitar
The cowboy grins through the terrible din,
***
And in the Ninth, a choking woman wails
Look like this country done left us for dead.
An unforgettable reminder that poetry can still be “news that stays news,” Blood Dazzler is a necessary step toward national healing.
Patricia Smith is the author of four previous collections of poetry, including Teahouse of the Almighty, winner of the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award and the Paterson Poetry Prize. A record-setting, national poetry slam champion, she was featured in the film Slamnation, on the HBO series Def Poetry Jam, and is a frequent contributor to Harriet, the Poetry Foundation’s blog. Visit her website at www.wordwoman.ws.
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