The speaker in Iranian-American poet Leila Farjami's debut collection, Daughter of Salt, fiercely engages with and questions her mother, her father, ancestors, and herself. Patriarchy, intergenerational trauma, and displacement swirl together, colored by the frustration at being expected to hold it all together for everyone else: A daughter made of salt-a dead sea to keep bodies afloat. Throughout, the daughter vacillates between rebellion, acceptance, and empathy, searching for healing from a childhood marked by war and violence. This collection moves the reader into remembrance and healing; the preservation and renewal of the self that occurs when grace is given to others and ourselves, when we allow ourselves to keep close the memories we share with those we have lost, and use them to build a foundation for a better future.
