A review by bookdenjen
Apocalyptic Mannequin: The Definition of Body is Buried, by Stephanie M. Wytovich

5.0

If you've been following my updates for a while, you know I enjoy reading poetry. I especially love reading horror poetry so I was really excited to check out Stephanie Wytovich's latest collection The Apocalyptic Mannequin. Several of the Ladies of Horror Fiction team members had already read and loved it so I had high expectations going into it.

Wow, was this collection timely! I have no idea why I wasn't expecting a book called "The Apocalyptic Mannequin" to be so apocalyptic. It hit me hard in the pandemic feels! I'm pretty sure I've been avoiding the topic of outbreaks and plagues in my entertainment so I'm glad I didn't realize what I was getting myself into when I picked it up. It turned out to be perfect timing, and I loved it!

At roughly 100 poems, there are a lot of flavors of the apocalypse to be had, and they are all terrifying.

One of the most important things I look for in poetry is being able to understand it in a way that I can relate to. I've read a lot of poetry that has left me scratching my head, but Wytovich's poetry is very accessible. There is a reason Stephanie Wytovich is so well loved in the horror community. Her writing is beautiful and it's brutal.

If you are looking for a recommendation on where to start reading poetry or are simply looking for another great collection to pick up, The Apocalyptic Mannequin is on my recommendations list. It's a travesty that I've put off reading Wytovich's poetry collections until now. Since finishing The Apocalyptic Mannequin, I've added four more of her collections to my shelf. I plan to lose myself in each of them over the next few months so stay tuned for my thoughts on those as well.