Rise and Fall of My Beloved
by Utanu Maa
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GENRE: Poetry
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BLURB:
Rise and Fall of My Beloved is a collection of poetry and prose about resilience—about the experience of stigma and rejection, disease and suffering, love and care, loss and grief—and also a testimony of gratitude, forgiveness and togetherness. Each of its three parts is a journey through life's struggles, pain and loss, all of which require an inner force to overcome, build, rebuild, succeed and heal: resilience. It expresses an undercurrent to an imposed destiny or stigma.
Based on the life experience of my late brother, Rise and Fall of My Beloved is a tribute to mankind's resilience to overcome adversities. The book takes readers from his vulnerable childhood as a neglected orphan set to die, through a childhood in which he was bullied, to his rise as an accomplished engineer, and sadly to his fall as a dying patient of HIV/AIDS. Each poem depicts the essence of unconditional love and care, the dignity of dying of AIDS, forgiveness, and family bond. This book is a manifesto of my brother's exceptional resilience, the best memory of him that will live forever. It is an invitation, an inspiration, a reflection that, when mankind encounters struggles, disease, pain, death, loss, grief, we have to grieve and heal, and rebuild.
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EXCERPT
On The Downwards
Education raised Zola high on a pedestal,
The ascent of a resilient and self-made man.
The fall to come from that height was imminent.
The brave and loving human was struck by a disease
From a possible virus, still unknown but terrifying,
Each day consuming his body slowly but fatally.
A deadly infection had ravaged his cells to the core,
Killing him steadily from inside like a bug in a tree.
Alas, he had ignored the symptoms for several months.
At first, he thought of cold or malaria; however, repetitive,
Consistent cough, fever, weakness, loss of appetite
Added to drastic weight loss and a cohort of other signs.
Then, eruptions appeared on the skin all over his body
Like chickenpox twice in one’s lifetime, curiously.
Worrisome and alarming facts were once more neglected.
Zola’s education conflicted with his superstitious beliefs
Relative to the cultural context where he grew up and lived,
Where diseases like this are mystical, the work of a witch,
Malice from the forces of darkness wanting to harm.
Superstition perpetually collides with reasoning and science,
Medicine, common sense, and visible signs of a severe disease.
Superstition is profoundly embedded in many perplexed minds
That turn confusedly to both witchcraft and religion for answers.
The so-called men of God prayed and promised miracles;
The wizard or witchcraft man lured with magical healing.
A charlatan exploited the desperate sick man for his benefit;
Meanwhile, the bug inside Zola’s body continued to ravage.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
I am Utanu MAA. I live in Toronto and work as a public servant within the Ontario Court of Justice. Originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa, where I studied French Literature and Law before migrating to Canada in 1991, and thereafter studied Fashion Marketing, Paralegal and Law (1year) programs. In 2004, I was a recipient of a prize for the Poetry contest organized by Canada Heritage during the celebration of the Francophonie. "Couleur d'une langue" (The Color of a language), my unpublished poem about the diversity and different accents that give rhythm and power to a language to become an umbrella of one identity. "Rise and Fall of My Beloved" is also my own journey into unconditional love and care, and the resilience to deal with pain, loss, grief, to grieve, heal and continue with life after my brother's death.
Connect with Utanu Maa:
http://utanumaa.com/
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorUtanuMaa
Purchase Links:
AMAZON.COM
https://amazon.com/dp/0228836506
AMAZON.CA
https://amazon.ca/dp/0228836506
KINDLE
https://amazon.com/dp/B08M2DNJHP
BOOKSHOP
https://bookshop.org/books/rise-and-fall-of-my-beloved/9780228836506
INDIGO CHAPTERS
https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/rise-and-fall-of-my/9780228836513-item.html
BARNES & NOBLE
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/rise-and-fall-of-my-beloved-utanu-maa/1138021915
BOOK DEPOSITORY
https://www.bookdepository.com/Rise-and-Fall-of-My-Beloved-Utanu-Maa/9780228836506
RAKUTEN KOBO
https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/rise-and-fall-of-my-beloved
SMASHWORDS
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1051884
APPLE BOOKS
https://books.apple.com/us/book/rise-and-fall-of-my-beloved/id1538242460
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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION
The author will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner
via rafflecopter during the tour.
Thank you for hosting!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome!
DeleteGreetings. Thank you Jasmine for having me on this book tour. My gratitude also to Goddess Fish Promotions for organizing this tour. I also thank every reader for their interest to my book and for their kind comments. I will take time to reply to each of your comments. I hope that you have taken advantage of the book giveaway. I wish you all a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year 2021. Let us all stay safe and resilient. Have a wonderful week.
DeleteI liked the excerpt, thank you.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!
Hi Rita, I Hope that your holiday season was great. Thank you for stopping by and for your comment. I am glad that you like the excerpt. I write to tell a true story on a subject that many can related to directly or indirectly because the HIV infection is still disastrous for mankind and we need to be aware and safe. I lost my brother to this disease, and I witnessed the devastation on a human's life, and how the opportunistic viruses decimate the human body and precipitate it to death. So my writing is to bring awareness from a true personal testimony. I am glad that you like the excerpt and your support my book. I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. I hope that you took advantage of the giveaway and did enter the contest. Wishing you a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year 2021.
DeleteVery nice cover.
ReplyDeleteHi Lynn. Thank you for stopping by and kindly leaving a comment. Indeed! A nice book cover just as I envisaged it with a very meaningful reason. The colors are of a rainbow as depicted on the cover to symbolize the exuberance of joy, life, hope or serenity, all good feelings after a storm, a resilience in hard times. The colors of a rainbow to express the exuberance of beauty, joy, life after a storm, positive feelings to overcome hard times and be resilient. In fact, this book is also my own journey to grieving and healing after my brother's death. A magnificent rainbow spread over a clear and blue sky just after his burial, and then disappeared. I understood that he was at peace and was laughing at me for bearing so much griefs. I promised him to grieve and heal, and express gratitude for all the blessings he had in his life. These colors symbolize the resilience to overcome. Thank you for liking it. I really appreciate your comment. My best wishes to you for a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year.
DeleteHappy New Year!! Thanks for sharing the great post :)
ReplyDeleteHi Victoria, nice to see you stopping by and kindly leaving a such a vibrant comment. I love and can feel your positive energy. Thank you. I wish you the best in this New Year 2021: Happiness, good health, peace and prosperity. CHEERS!!!
DeleteThis sounds like such a good book.
ReplyDeleteHi Sherry, I hope my message finds you well. Nice to hearing from you and reading your positive comment. I wish that you take advantage of the book giveaway and enter the contest for a discount. I write about a true personal experience of a human being and his existential struggles from an early age up to death, and the resilience to overcome each time; a story which anybody can related to directly or indirectly. The book depicts the devastation on a human's life by HIV/AIDS, and how the opportunistic viruses decimate the human body and precipitate it to death. You will exit this reading journey not only inspired by resilience but also with a lesson of gratitude even in hard times because gratitude leads to and nourishes resilience. On that note, I wish you a Happy New year 2021.
DeleteGreat excerpt and giveaway. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Cali. Nice to hearing from you and reading your supportive comment. I am glad that you like the excerpt. I write to tell a true story on a subject that many can related to directly or indirectly because the HIV infection is still disastrous for mankind and we need to be aware and safe. I lost my brother to this disease, and I witnessed the devastation on a human's life, and how the opportunistic viruses decimate the human body and precipitate it to death. So my writing is to bring awareness from a true personal testimony. I am glad that you like the excerpt and your support my book. I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. I hope that you took advantage of the giveaway and did enter the contest. Wishing you a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year 2021.
ReplyDelete