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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
This collection of poetry by Cyrus Park was neutral territory for me. Some poems gripped my heart, others I could go without. This lands squarely right in the middle of so-so.
The collection does have some distressing topics, which I found hard to read. I think that they're important to cover, and I'm glad we have voices that are willing to speak out about hardships, especially around childhood.
I received a free copy of this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The collection does have some distressing topics, which I found hard to read. I think that they're important to cover, and I'm glad we have voices that are willing to speak out about hardships, especially around childhood.
I received a free copy of this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Parker's poetry unearths the deepest veins running through the human experience. His work feels like the masculine side of the same coin where their wife, Amanda Lovelace's, is the feminine flipside. While I met Lovelace's poetry first and identify with her experiences most, Parker Lee's collection holds a place in my life as their life experiences and mine being fraught with similar emotions to similar experiences. Parker Lee can count me as one of the people who needed to hear/read their words. I highly recommend this poet and their poetry.
parker writes poems that kind of dig a hole into your being- they’re relatable and mournful but with an underlying of hope and i know they won’t be leaving my mind any time soon
Yet another amazing title from a brilliant poet. A work perfect for people who are looking to get into poetry or those who are tired of the pretense, Parker strips their words down to an emotional level and appeals to poetry readers of all experiences. It is refreshing to be able to pick up a poetry book of this caliber and know one is going on a journey of both the heart and mind. 5/5, I can't wait for the next!
Masquerade by Cyrus Parker is a collection of poetry that follows Parker’s journey to self acceptance, their romantic and familial relationships, and their gender identity. This collection of poetry is a great quick and relatable read for anyone who is unsure or struggling with their gender identity or expression or for anyone who just wants to learn more. 5/5
I was sent this book as an advanced copy by the publisher via NetGalley for reviewing purposes, but all opinions are my own
Ever since I found out that Cyrus Parker was married to Amanda Lovelace, one of my favorite poets, I've been wanting to read his books. So I jumped on the opportunity to request this when I saw it was on NetGalley.
This is second poetry collection, his first one being "dropkick romance", which I, unfortunately, have not yet read. Despite that, after reading this one, I felt like I really knew him. The poems were very relatable and honest.
Now I'm dying to read his first collection and more of what he publishes in the future.
Ever since I found out that Cyrus Parker was married to Amanda Lovelace, one of my favorite poets, I've been wanting to read his books. So I jumped on the opportunity to request this when I saw it was on NetGalley.
This is second poetry collection, his first one being "dropkick romance", which I, unfortunately, have not yet read. Despite that, after reading this one, I felt like I really knew him. The poems were very relatable and honest.
Now I'm dying to read his first collection and more of what he publishes in the future.
3.75 stars
I quite enjoyed this collection, I was not surprised considering I enjoyed Parker's last collection as well. Masquerade is beautiful and deals with so many touching and important topics. Such as self-esteem, non-binary topics, dysphoria, fear, pain, witchcraft a bit, etc. Overall I was really impressed, I read this with my boyfriend and we both enjoyed the beautiful writing and metaphors. The illustrations were also a perfect touch. Looking forward to whatever Parker releases in the future!
I quite enjoyed this collection, I was not surprised considering I enjoyed Parker's last collection as well. Masquerade is beautiful and deals with so many touching and important topics. Such as self-esteem, non-binary topics, dysphoria, fear, pain, witchcraft a bit, etc. Overall I was really impressed, I read this with my boyfriend and we both enjoyed the beautiful writing and metaphors. The illustrations were also a perfect touch. Looking forward to whatever Parker releases in the future!
I adored Cyrus' first collection so it is no surprise that i loved this collection even more. it's brave and unique and powerful!
I don't read a lot of poetry, and this was probably the first time I really fell in love with a book from the genre. Masquerade was everything I don't expect poetry books to be for me.
Reading it, I could feel a frisson of what the poet must've felt while writing them. The pain, the desperation, the hurt...it was all so real. So raw.
I want to applaud the poet for sharing this amazing collection with us. Reading it, I can imagine how personal it must be to them. It takes a lot of courage to share something that personal with the world.
I loved all of the poems, but some of them especially stood out to me. Like, Smokey Eyes...it was so inspiring, so uplifting. And I could practically feel the desperation in Graverobber and I could also relate to it a lot because I'm no stranger to not being able to say what's on the tip of my tongue. i am become, 5:30 a.m. and the final masquerade were all pretty darn amazing too.
Now I'm going to go check if I can afford a paperback copy of this book. I'd recommend you to do the same and order an eBook if you can't afford the paperback because you need to read this one!
Reading it, I could feel a frisson of what the poet must've felt while writing them. The pain, the desperation, the hurt...it was all so real. So raw.
I want to applaud the poet for sharing this amazing collection with us. Reading it, I can imagine how personal it must be to them. It takes a lot of courage to share something that personal with the world.
I loved all of the poems, but some of them especially stood out to me. Like, Smokey Eyes...it was so inspiring, so uplifting. And I could practically feel the desperation in Graverobber and I could also relate to it a lot because I'm no stranger to not being able to say what's on the tip of my tongue. i am become, 5:30 a.m. and the final masquerade were all pretty darn amazing too.
Now I'm going to go check if I can afford a paperback copy of this book. I'd recommend you to do the same and order an eBook if you can't afford the paperback because you need to read this one!
I liked part ii the best. The lack of capitalisation annoyed the fuck out of me, as did the amount of “you” poems/prose. But of all the Insta poetry I’ve read lately this has probably been the best