by Kevin Mallik

Covid pandemic may get over soon but its ramifications and effects may linger with the human race for many generations to come. No one wants to remember Covid 19 for any good reasons, yet, at the same time, people may want to recount what they had to go through. What about a sublime and beautifully written poetry collection that sails through the Corona pandemic time – taking the world tour – and depicting how we people of this world changed from worst to hopeful?

The book ‘Get Lost Dirty Covid 19’ is written by mother and daughter duo Madalsa and Zuivere. They were posted in Australia when Corona virus hit us; as a result of lockdown they come up with a 116 pages book on how people felt and got terrified during lock down days to silent funerals. The book breaks the traditional and conventional norms of poetry; it is rather focused on content and its significance. The book is very simple to read and relate. This aspect makes it look like a juicy journal on Covid 19 crises and how people faired their lives in the year 2020.

The book is divided into 9 segments such as Covid to Social Distancing to Fear to Hope and so on. A sort of funny but meaningful illustration precedes the each segment of poems. If one is searching for a light and casual read that can tell each and every thing about Covid crises without putting any burden on nerves, then this is the book to be picked up.

The first segment of the book is based on general feelings associated with Covid 19. For the teenage author Madalsa, it is just another normal virus. However, with time as she got stuck in the four walls and watched the clear skies through the windows she realized that with it not only brought silent death but also queer loneliness and fear.

Further, in this segment each poem sounds like a story in itself. Both authors has kept the tumultuous load of poetry at bay and rather put the show of simple and lucid narration even in poems. Here are some of the lines from the first segment:

The world is suffering a lockdown in every city and every town.

We all have been shoved inside four walls like birds in cages,

And inside we sit, experiencing life’s dark stages.

Evidently, the above lines say the reality we all braved. Similarly, the saga of real stories in the poetic and prose way goes on. In total, there are around 80 plus poems. The authors have touched on every possible aspect that pervaded the Covid pandemic time. All poems are interconnected and do not show the distinguished gap between two generations – mother and daughter. Their line of thoughts is on the same wavelength. Readers will not be able to find, after one time, as who is leading and who is supporting.

Our View on the Cover:

The cover of the book is simple yet multi-layered. There are big ‘signature’ images of virus that we often get to see in biology subject under the microscope. Another noticeable thing is the pink backdrop, may be the authors are females that’s why it is like this. The title is given in white space: it clearly indicates the hope message for readers. Overall, the cover is meaningful but not so highly attractive. Those who judge the book by cover may miss its value.

Characters:

Since it is a poetry collection staged against the Covid pandemic, it is likely that there are no tangible characters. Surprisingly, the authors mentioned Abdul in the last poem of the book. It was about clear skies. If readers get under the skin of the book, they may feel that the collection is built around the authors and their observation of the world during Covid pandemic time.  

Writing Style:

As said earlier, it is a simple yet relatable book. Every single soul that suffered the wrath of lockdown and observed silent graveyards is likely to find pain and solace in this book. The authors have not maintained much of the rhythm but kept the poems very simple and powerful. They built the tempo gradually from introduction to social distancing etiquettes and miseries to hope and fighting the pandemic. Their writing style is brave.

Author Madalsa is a teenager, she wrote whatever she could grasp about the world around her in the Covid crises. The poems blend nicely in their essence and stance. It is a highly readable collection from new to veteran readers.

Who Can Read:

We recommend this book to all readers looking for a simple and clean elaboration of Corona crises and what it meant to humankind. Some may find the collection embarrassing but truth has its own veracity. It will be better to read the collection over and again in order to get an immersive experience.

Our Final Verdict:

This collection is for all of us who gone through or may be still going through this painful and tough time of Covid 19. Covering the entire crises in 9 topics with around 85 poems, the book is terrific with its appeal and message to the human race. Evidently, there is pain and fear but the authors also worked hard to reinstate hope during the crises. The collection, unlike Covid, is not to be feared rather readers can save it to their bookshelves to showcase to their future generations.