matttruss's review
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
3.5
I enjoyed much of this collection, there were a view that fell flat for me, but there are a few lines of pure gold. I think the final section was the strongest, personally. There are many undertones of sadness throughout the collection, confusion, hurt, and discovery of self but there is also love and happiness to be found. Both are done very well and I enjoy how deftly the sadness was written. It was also great to hear from a queer, Asian-American voice. One of the poems included made me think about how few Asian artists I seek out and made me glad to be reading one. I would absolutely seek out more from Chen in the future.
I do wish the Foreward didn't include...giant chunks of the poems to come in the collection...that seemed unnecessary.
"I'm envious of the clouds who can from time to time fall completely apart and everyone just says, it's raining, and someone might even bring cats and dogs into it."
I do wish the Foreward didn't include...giant chunks of the poems to come in the collection...that seemed unnecessary.
"I'm envious of the clouds who can from time to time fall completely apart and everyone just says, it's raining, and someone might even bring cats and dogs into it."
canteen143's review against another edition
5.0
when i grow up i want to have immaculate taste in books like david (dear david, thank you so much for telling me that this is your current favorite poetry book, i devoured this book in one sitting and now i'm tearing up.)
xomeera's review
2.5
Very contemporary voice, which I loved at times and winced at in others. The simplicity of the prose here made it very accessible and often stirring in its directness, but sometimes it felt like rambling, with its themes and tone bordering on overdone. I did like the sentiment and frankness in many of these poems, though.
the_lilypad's review against another edition
emotional
funny
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
I really liked the poems. But felt like they just washed over me. Even after just reading them I didn’t my retain much. Maybe just a feeling.
That’s a me thing though, but a reflection of the poems.
That’s a me thing though, but a reflection of the poems.