After You

by Cyril Wong

In a lasting marriage, one could still outlive the other. A poet gazes upon his older partner, pondering the inevitable. Panic, heartache, and a surprising sense of acceptance, interwoven with instances of joyful resilience, punctuate the ordinariness of their everyday lives and occupy these poems about same-sex love, death, and the fragile art of testimony.

Genres: Poetry, Queer

62 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2013

About the author

Cyril Wong is a two-time Singapore Literature Prize-winning poet and the recipient of the Singapore National Arts Council’s Young Artist Award for Literature. His books include poetry collections Tilting Our Plates to Catch the Light (2007) and The Lover’s Inventory (2015), novels The Last Lesson of Mrs de Souza (2013) and This Side of Heaven (2020), and fiction collection Ten Things My Father Never Taught Me (2014). He completed his doctoral degree in English Literature at the National University of Singapore in 2012. His works have been featured in the Norton anthology, Language for a New Century, in Chinese Erotic Poems by Everyman’s Library, and in magazines and journals around the world. His writings have been translated into Turkish, German, Italian, French, Portuguese and Japanese.

Reviews

[Andrew H · Rating 5 out of 5]

After You parallels Tilting Our Plates To Catch the Light . Both volumes have a focus on a relationship. But After You is more intimate. Cyril Wongs's language is pared to the bone in this collection, yet that does not reduce the emotional impact of each poem-- the paring reflects an attention to detail and focus, to modulations in the voice. As a craftsmen, Cyril Wong grasps what so many Instagram poets do not realise: brevity is not a descent into vacuous statement. As Pound famously defined poetry, dichten=condensare. Qualitative speech relates to condensing meaning into the minimum words. That does not, however, imply the meaningless motto poetry that is starting to fill the shelves in the UK.

before stepping up again to become
better lovers and friends
how crucial to grow before happiness finds us
before finding each other as all that we can be

The sentiment is inseparable from the weighting of syllables and its poised line turnings.

[Julie Koh · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book like this is only written for a specific kind of reader - a reader with a soul, one who understands the desires and psychological conflicts that underpin any lasting romantic relationship. I still never believe there are absolute "rules" or "regulations" for what "excellent poetry" can be, and those who tirelessly champion such parameters often remind me of Neo-Nazis in Charlottesville (who are gaining traction these days). If I'm a "Neo-Nazi" for inclusivity and openness, then let me be a "Neo-Nazi" for love and heartbreak; let me work harder to keep basking in my light of heartbroken idealism without weapons or any desire to denigrate others in the name of being "right", while I carry this little poetry book to my grave.

[mm · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a big fan of Cyril Wong's poetry.
In 'After You' the pain is almost palpable -- the impending loss of a loved one. All I could think is how lucky he has been to have known such love -- to have experienced it to feel the pain-to-come.

AFTER
leaving thought
between pages closing
in another book of dreams
memory has become

avowal's true meaning
the two of us
that was once all of me
fading at last as I speak

But it was not all pain. As always, with every good poet, there are gems to treasure.

ARS POETICA
ask for poetry
that teaches us to live
love and depart
without flinching

Wong does that so well.

[Jake · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wong has a sense for the poetics of the quiet. Here he drags it out over an entire collection, letting sparse words inhabit their spaces on the page, akin to Olafur Arnalds' instrumentations. Yet, though he relates life after a lover's death to us in honest terms, he only manages to convey its impact and depth to us on a few occasions and no more. Still, these moments capture the reader, and speak volumes.

[Review 1 - 20/05/17.]

[Jericho Eames · Rating 4 out of 5]

His poems are heartbreaking and so real. It hurts, each page that I flip, the emotions seemed to seep into the very fingers that hold onto the page. It dissolves from paper into skin, into system. I loved the very real and fleeting imagery that he has painted in my mind. I could feel the deep pain and yearning to spend more time together with his loved one, but time only robs from us mortals.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed reading this collection. Will try to get my hands on more of Wong's stuff.

[faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

these poems feel so intimate, a personal and specific snapshot of life and love that somehow in its microscopic purview touch something universal - i am honoured to access that, for a moment.

personally really enjoy cyril wong's style of poetry - simple but not superficial, a beauty and startling quality to the words (also some really good imagery and concepts). "confessional poet" is quite apt.

(shall not be cliche and say human condition but really, isn't it? tfw ur friends look at romance in books/shows/vids and go "im so lonely" n u don't get it but then u read this and you don't exactly feel lonely but also u think damn to feel this)

favourite poems:
- an explanation
- writing exercise
- insomnia
- aubade reloaded
- after

and the last stanza of ars poetica:
"ask for poetry
that teaches us to live
love and depart
without flinching"

[zhixin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cyril Wong is always a pleasure to read - he has a voice immediately personal and a craft that is immeasurably elegant. A less intense experience than Tilting our plates, however. It sometimes becomes a little prosaic, and other times too abstract for an emotional connection.

[Guan You · Rating 3 out of 5]

Appreciated the intersectionalities between age, gender, religion, and race. Love and loss are always closely intertwined, but they are made somehow bearable in those fleeting moments of transient reprieve.

[Yan Kai · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am not sure but this felt like a sequel to Tilting Our Plates to Catch the Light. If Tilting Our Plates to Catch the Light is an incandescent flame, then After You is merely the persistent afterglow of the embers. Not as electrifying, this left me slightly underwhelmed.

[Carman Chew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely more bearable than Satori Blues (and I'm always a sucker for narratives with yearning). More confessional than half-finished meditations. But with the emptiness of pages, I'm wondering if we could've lingered longer on some thoughts so that the anthology reads less like a philosophe scrambling to finish diary pages.

[Cheng Him · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cyril speaks frankly in his work, and After You speaks to me in such a way that has allowed me to revisit it time and time again.

Not many poets can claim to be medicinal about their writing, but frankly, Cyril comes rather close to that.

10/10 will recommend to anyone looking to get started on Sing Lit poetry.

[Yoke Mun · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not particularly well-versed in poetry so I probably was not able to fully appreciate Cyril’s writing. That said, I did enjoy quite a bit—the poems were poignant and intimate, documenting snippets of his life with his partner, coloured with a sense of impending loss. Lovely quick read.

[Leia Deva · Rating 5 out of 5]

the most loving portrait.