Poetry. Asian American Studies. A revised edition of this popular book of poetry. Chitra Divakaruni evokes the sounds, smells, tastes, sights of South Asian culture. Told in a woman's voice, these poems create a mindscape of a woman's experience, their hold both tenuous and graceful. The world in this book is a necklace of bright pearls that burns the skin, yet is... fastened to the body with a jeweled clasp: the compassion of Divakaruni's fiercely seeing heart -- Jane Hirshfield.