Bury Me Naked by Teamhw SbonguJesu (Deep South, 2022)

In his debut book of poems Bury Me Naked, Teamhw SbonguJesu introduces us to a rural Pietermaritzburg township in sharp and provocative language.

As a whole the collection, Bury Me Naked can be considered a work of performance art. Individually, the poems are often nihilistic, provocative, and shocking. As a whole, it presents us with deep sociological questions. In sociological discourse, there is at times a need for a radical perspective, able to initiate robust discussion from leftists, liberals, and even conservatives. SbonguJesu definitely has something here.

While parts of the book may be painful for those who have experienced trauma, and uncomfortable for the squeamish or conservative, it is also important to note that the unpleasant details contained here are the lived experience of many black South Africans. There comes a time when the wounds of a country need to be confronted rather than be turned away from. Bury Me Naked is an open wound, a horror of South Africa’s past manifested. While the contents of the poems may be shocking, the real work begins with those willing to be brave.