“Bursting Seams” By Jollin Tan

by Elizabeth Tan

I stumbled upon Bursting Seams whilst just browsing around at Books Actually. In all honesty, what initially attracted me to the book was the rather interesting book cover. Featuring a semi-nude woman with long hair alongside the title Bursting Seams, I was drawn to graphic design of the cover because it stood out amongst the sea of other abstract-looking books. I remember being quite surprised because usually many local books seemed to have more conservative and ‘safe’ looking visuals that weren’t as bold as Bursting Seams. My next move was to flip to the content page in order to discern if the book was truly about one’s body image. Just like the cover of the book that aptly portrayed the main theme of this poetry collection, the titles of her poetry were direct and straightforward – Tsunami, My belly, Corset, Thunder thighs and Being beautiful (Just to name a few). It piqued my interest because I feel that it isn’t common to find poetry written by a local Singaporean author that deviates from discussing nationalistic concerns or trying to address political issues. Instead, this poetry collection was a raw and heartfelt compilation of personal thoughts about an extremely relevant issue in today’s modern society.

Just to share little bit of background information I found out about the author. “Jollin’s poetry is mainly preoccupied with addressing issues that are closest to her heart, mostly involving one’s appearance and body image.” Being only 21, she has already published two poetry collections, namely, Bursting Seams and Derivative faith. Bursting Seams is a compilation of poetry about being overweight in a society that values ‘thin-ness’ and that places focus on appearances more than anything else. It is not merely something only woman can relate to but is something that appeals to the general public because the collection is such a genuine and uncensored representation of this sensitive issue. Encompassing a total of 26 poems in 68 pages, I found it a pleasant read because I feel that poetry which stems from one’s personal experiences is undoubtedly the most honest and purest forms of self-expression.

To keep this blog post succinct, I would just like to discuss my favorite poems from the collection – Being Beautiful. The way she places importance on the link between physicality and poetry are clearly exemplified in her poetry. (See the form of “Being Beautiful” as an example). With her emotions intricately woven in the lines of every sentence, she uses common imagery such as “Barbie doll” and “perfect hourglass figure” in order to illustrate her points. Positioning her words in a strategic manner to form a concave figure, it not only draws in at the middle, forming half an hour-glass figure but it also draws the reader’s attention to its form. Though it’s an unconventional form, I feel that there’s no better way this poem could be written. The poem talks about beauty being more than what meets the eye, it is something that is hidden from sight and can only be discovered when you truly know what the person is made of. “Being Beautiful” is the last poem in the collection and I feel that Bursting Seams reflects a journey of maturity in dealing with one’s body image and perception of physical appearances as we flip from one page to another. Ultimately when we reach the last poem, “Being Beautiful”, she states “I am beautiful because this body holds stories that its skin tells”. Accepting one’s self seems to come from going through a growing process, which can be paralleled to the development of poems in the collection. What really struck me when I was reading her poetry was the simplicity of her words. Though her words are simple, the emotions that dwell beneath them are complex.

I am beautiful not in spite of my imperfections, but
because of what I am. Five feet two and seventy
kilograms, I am not your Barbie doll, with the
perfect hourglass figure (by the way, that
shuold remind you that her time is
running out). I am beautiful
because this body holds
stories that its skin
tells, and every
welt, every
mark, every
goose pimple
is Braille for you…

[the poem then expands out symmetrically]

(Being Beautiful by Jollin Tan)

It’s really inspiring to see that someone my age is a successful local author. It not only gives me hope that the Singaporean literary scene is progressing but also that “young people” are interested in literature and the arts. What made me pick this poetry book to review instead of other local texts was the fact that the content of “Bursting Seams” is really different from other local texts. She isn’t afraid to express and share her own struggles with such personal issues. Her poetry also encourages others who face the same experiences as she does, and the issues discussed are relatable to every single reader. Being in a society that places so much importance on looks and appearances, it isn’t easy for someone to speak out about such a sensitive issue that many struggle with. I hope that local authors would be more like Jollin, in the sense that they would be courageous enough to express themselves in the same raw manner that she did. Instead of writing poetry that contained hints of nationalistic elements, it would be refreshing to see more personal issues being discussed in local works. I feel that local literature doesn’t merely have to be confined to addressing “local” and “Singaporean” issues such as housing, language…etc (I hope you get my drift) but that it can also focus on more general and broader topics. (Just like what Bursting Seams did). If we were to break out of this invisible stereotype that Singaporean literature is inadvertently linked to, I suppose the value of local literature would increase drastically. By writing about more personal issues, people would be able to better relate to it instead of dismissing it as just another piece of ‘typical’ local literature and instead view it as art. “Bursting Seams” is truly an inspiring read because it’s so empowering and pure. I would strongly recommend it to anyone who has spare time to read (Perhaps after finals?) and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!