The Digest | New Jersey Magazine
Issue link: https://magazines.vuenj.com/i/925836
Despite not having won any awards or been appointed any titles, Kaur is the best-selling poet of our generation, and maybe ever. Her first book, "Milk and Honey," has sold over 2.5 million copies worldwide since its 2014 release and spent 78 weeks on e New York Times Trade Paperback Best-Seller list. For comparison, it beat out Homer's "e Odyssey" which was once considered the highest grossing book of all time. Her social media following alone is akin to that of the Hollywood elite, nearing two million in total, which is utterly unheard of for any literary figure past or present. So what is it about Kaur and her work that speaks to the masses? Some would say it's her ability to connect. Aer posting her prose, short-form poetry and artwork on Tumblr in 2012, Kaur knew she had an audience. It wasn't big, but there was a group of South Asian women who took to her. She wasn't writing about romance, life or love—Kaur was writing about troubling issues that few before her have dared to explore: violence, sexual abuse and trauma. What didn't happen directly to her, she witnessed personally afflict members of her own family. In "Milk and Honey," Kaur gave a voice to the Indian women who aren't allowed to have one. But something else happened too—something much more unexpected. Kaur tapped into the human experience and the world was standing by, watching and waiting. At any stop on her tour, expect a line. Not a line outside of a corner bookstore or coffee shop but an arena. And don't think that it will be quiet or subdued, listen for the roars of her followers. Some will likely have her lyrics tattooed upon their bodies, others will recite Kaur's own words back to her in tandem. It is the equivalent of seeing your favorite artist in concert but one that touches on every facet of your being. In one sitting, Kaur will make you laugh, smile, and oentimes, bring you to tears. Her poetry in itself doesn't ask for a lot, which is why it's so well-received and also highly criticized. Her minimalist style and simplistic language doesn't challenge you in the ways that you've been taught traditional poetry should. Kaur is straightforward in her delivery, precise with her words and relatable in her sentiments. And aer a three year hiatus, she has finally made her long-awaited return with "e Sun and Her Flowers"—a project Kaur told Interview Magazine's Rebecca Szkutak she started working on the same day her first book came out. "Between 2014 and now, there was a long period I wasn't writing, because when 'Milk and Honey' really hit off I was VUE ON ART V U E N J . C O M 84