Winshen Liu's Paper Money is a sensory and sparse exploration of grief and the complexity of the second-generation Taiwanese immigrant experience in America.
"These poems awaken our own yearning for the universe of the senses that Liu renders with an exquisitely refined depth of observation."
- Diane Seuss,
author of frank: sonnets and Modern Poetry
This book is an exploration of language, particularly the intersection of languages that is a part of having a foot in two countries (in this case, Taiwan and the US). Liu includes Chinese characters and words that will add a layer for both English and bi-lingual readers.
Many poems are full of sensory images, particularly foodways and customs, that draw the reader into the world of the poems. Food is deeply connected to memory and community and is a powerful symbol throughout.
This collection is ultimately about grief, both elegy for the death of the speaker's grandfather, and an exploration of the loss and longing one feels for home.
The motif of money draws up the important theme of poverty and the "American Dream."
Paper Money is for lovers of tight, image-heavy verse, and those interested in learning more about the Taiwanese immigrant experience in America from a fresh new voice.
