soulkissed2003's review against another edition
3.0
While poetry is not my favorite genre, I do take time to enjoy it and explore it from time to time. The beauty of a good collection of poems is that you are likely to find quite a few that you can relate to. Then, if you were to read the same works some time later, perhaps a different handful of verses would mean the most. Sherry Rentschler has certainly crafted and collected a fine sampling of her work. Most importantly, she clearly lets her creative vision be free and uninhibited. She allows her ideas to flourish without the boundaries of set rhyme or meter, or other conventional norms. Sometimes the most thought-provoking poetry is the kind that breaks all the rules!
Readers will discover that the author's poems cover a variety of topics and emotions. She touches on serious topics, such as escaping (or not being able to escape) an abusive relationship. Yet in other works she has some fun, such as in her word play in a descriptive poem about a rainy day, or in her verses about finding joy and passion in a long-term relationship that has lasted for years. I feel her words will resonate with a wide audience thanks to her diverse body of work in this anthology.
The book was published in July, 2013 by Author House. ISBN: 978-1-4817-6686-9.
Readers will discover that the author's poems cover a variety of topics and emotions. She touches on serious topics, such as escaping (or not being able to escape) an abusive relationship. Yet in other works she has some fun, such as in her word play in a descriptive poem about a rainy day, or in her verses about finding joy and passion in a long-term relationship that has lasted for years. I feel her words will resonate with a wide audience thanks to her diverse body of work in this anthology.
The book was published in July, 2013 by Author House. ISBN: 978-1-4817-6686-9.
maryhastoomanybooks's review
5.0
I am no poetry expert. I have friends who write poetry that slips off their tongues so elegantly that all I can do is envy them, but I've never been too great at writing it. Or judging it, for that matter (sometimes deeper meaning just flies over my head!).
However, I know what it is like to enjoy poetry. And I enjoyed Sherry Rentschler's poetry immensely.
First of all, I read this collection of poems in a single day. In less than eight hours, including going to school, celebrating my dad's birthday, and catching up on Korean dramas. And I never read poetry that quickly. So, if anything, the speed at which I finished Sherry's book is a testament to how engaging it is.
Second, my favorite thing about these poems is that Sherry does not waste words. At all. Oftentimes I find myself bored by poetry because the poems I'm reading waste time with pretty language and whatnot. I can pick out parts that are pointless. But in Sherry's poems, every single solitary word gives new meaning to the poem. She doesn't ramble, doesn't waste any time. She says what needs to be said, and what she means to say, and I am so thankful for and awed by that.
Third, I don't think I've ever, in my entire life, gotten so many chills while reading a book of poems. Ordinarily, one or two in a collection stick out to me as the "best" or the "most enjoyable," but with this book, every single time I think, "yes, this is my favorite poem!" I turn the page and a new poem takes that number one spot. I'm thrilled by every poem, and every picture, in this book, and that is so amazing! All through the day, when I had to stop reading and do work or sing Happy Birthday, it physically pained me to mark my spot and set the book down. I'm not exactly sure how I got so attached to these poems, but I did. And I think that is wonderful.
All in all, I really, thoroughly enjoyed these poems. I laughed, I teared up (in the middle of band, when they were playing "When You Wish Upon a Star" and I was reading "The Flip Side"), I held my breath, and my heart raced. It was a marvelous experience, and one that will probably be repeated again and again each time I read this fantastic work.
However, I know what it is like to enjoy poetry. And I enjoyed Sherry Rentschler's poetry immensely.
First of all, I read this collection of poems in a single day. In less than eight hours, including going to school, celebrating my dad's birthday, and catching up on Korean dramas. And I never read poetry that quickly. So, if anything, the speed at which I finished Sherry's book is a testament to how engaging it is.
Second, my favorite thing about these poems is that Sherry does not waste words. At all. Oftentimes I find myself bored by poetry because the poems I'm reading waste time with pretty language and whatnot. I can pick out parts that are pointless. But in Sherry's poems, every single solitary word gives new meaning to the poem. She doesn't ramble, doesn't waste any time. She says what needs to be said, and what she means to say, and I am so thankful for and awed by that.
Third, I don't think I've ever, in my entire life, gotten so many chills while reading a book of poems. Ordinarily, one or two in a collection stick out to me as the "best" or the "most enjoyable," but with this book, every single time I think, "yes, this is my favorite poem!" I turn the page and a new poem takes that number one spot. I'm thrilled by every poem, and every picture, in this book, and that is so amazing! All through the day, when I had to stop reading and do work or sing Happy Birthday, it physically pained me to mark my spot and set the book down. I'm not exactly sure how I got so attached to these poems, but I did. And I think that is wonderful.
All in all, I really, thoroughly enjoyed these poems. I laughed, I teared up (in the middle of band, when they were playing "When You Wish Upon a Star" and I was reading "The Flip Side"), I held my breath, and my heart raced. It was a marvelous experience, and one that will probably be repeated again and again each time I read this fantastic work.
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