Review: Growing Season by Rebecca Hale

 

Genre: Poetry

Description:

“Growing Season is an introspective collection of poetry about the ups and down of teenage years and early adulthood. This book discusses themes such as self discovery, depression, abusive relationships, looking for love, and overcoming trials. This book is perfect for anyone who finds themselves in the middle of a messy growing season, when they're still trying to figure out who they will become and what kind of life they will live.”

Author:

“Rebecca is a wife, mom of two, and a writer. Besides writing and reading, Rebecca loves to bake, spend time with her family, work on her garden, and be outside. She lives in the desert of Southern Arizona with her family, two dogs and a flock of chickens.”

Appraisal:

If you like poetry this collection is one that should speak to almost anyone to some degree. While it is reflecting on the author’s experience growing up, so is likely to connect best with a younger female who has gone through these experiences recently, or maybe is still going through them. However, an elderly old man like me can remember similar experiences and feel the message in these poems, even though it was many decades ago when he passed through that phrase of life.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

As the author’s note puts it “there are mentions of depression, suicidal ideation, struggles with body image, and emotionally abusive relationships, which might be triggering topics for some readers.”

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 6-7,000 words

Review: I Wish I Could Write by Katherine Widner

 Genre: Poetry Collection

Description:

“I Wish I Could Write is the debut work of writer, poet, and professor, Katherine Widner.

I Wish I Could Write is a powerful collection of poems that weaves together the complex threads of literature, identity, gender, religion, and family. Widner offers a thought-provoking analysis and reflective journey through the intersections of human experience, challenging readers to explore the depths of their own multifaceted identities.

In this striking collection, each poem serves as a mirror, not just for Widner, but for readers—reflecting the myriad ways that literary heritage, personal identities, gender expressions, and spiritual beliefs shape our understanding of the world and ourselves. Widner invites readers to question, celebrate, and reimagine the stories and memories that define us.”

Author:

“Katherine Widner is a writer and educator whose work explores the intersections of literature, identity, gender, and religion. With a background in British, American, and world literature, creative writing, and library and information sciences, Widner brings a unique and multifaceted perspective to her poetry. Her academic journey has taken her through several prestigious institutions in North Carolina, including the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and Greensboro. Widner's passion for fostering creativity and critical thinking in others is evident in her roles as a mentor to faculty and students alike, as well as in her role as an award-winning instructor.”

Appraisal:

A couple decades ago my first reviews of anything were reviewing record releases of a specific genre of music for a few websites and a magazine. My cohorts and I not only talked about the sound of the music, but had a tendency to go way down the rabbit hole, talking about the lyrics of the songs. In spite of this I would claim to not be a big poetry guy and seldom will you find me reading a poetry book, but I decided to give this one a read and I made the obvious connection. Poetry is just like song lyrics without the music in the background. A good poet, just like a good songwriter, can say a whole lot in just a few words. Of course the message you get from that poem might not be the same one another reader gets, and that’s okay too.

This collection was a good one with some poems that felt very personal, or maybe they weren’t about the author, but she put herself in the place of a friend or acquaintance when she wrote the poem. Regardless, it draws the reader into the same place. Some of the poems are longer and others shorter. Several toward the end take on specific forms. Haikus, which was a form I was familiar with as well as tankas and senryu, two other Japanese poetry forms that I wasn’t familiar with. We’ve also got a poem labeled as “a sentence” which is just what it sounds like, a poem done in one sentence and a “sentiment”, which is what it appears to be as well. In all, a big variety of well done poetry that took me back to my days of admiring song lyrics and in the process made me realize that I really do like poetry.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

A small number of adult words.

Format/Typo Issues:

No issues.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 4-5,000 words

Review: The Cool and Warmth of Hearts by J.A. Santana

 

Genre: Poetry Collection

Description:

A compilation of love poems.

Author:

“Jose is an IT professional by day, author by night; he’s usually humble, insatiably curious about the world; believes in creating a better world, so he delights people with words. He craves experiences, whether it’s traveling, adventurous activities, reading, writing, or having philosophical discussions about the various nuances of life. On the side, he ran a web design business only to find creative writing was his calling and resulted in his first publication, The Cool and Warmth of Hearts, and since has inspired future books in the genres he has a passion in: poetry, supernatural/horror, fantasy, and science fiction. He lives in Massachusetts and when he’s not reading or writing; he kicks back on a weekend night watching a movie or TV show or with loved ones.”

Appraisal:

It takes heart to write poetry; it takes discipline to write passably good poetry.

The Cool and Warmth of Hearts displays ample heart from adolescent passion in “A New Form of Being” to the ecstasy of love at first sight in “Lover’s Lane.”

Those two items are from the section “Pining,” containing poems of unrequited love, unfaithful lovers, and insecure lamentation. The book has seven sections including a prologue and an epilogue.

Discipline, however, can be found in none of those sections.

“A Renewed Feeling” has 10 lines of aa, bb rhyme scheme followed by four lines of ab, ab then back to aa, bb followed by no rhyme scheme and ending in four lines of aaaa.

“Love I” is broken into stanzas with lines numbering 6, 8, 11, 5, 6, 5, 7, 3, 3, 3, 6, 6.

A reader of a poet who uses rhyme schemes and stanzas has a rightful expectation of consistent structure rather than a mishmash.

The writer is not incapable of structured verse as seen in “Maiden’s Myth” with four-line stanzas and ab, ab rhyme. Unfortunately, the same poem displays a disregard of diction that is seen throughout this book. “Dawn” is used as a transitive verb, while “gnaw” is rendered a noun.

In “Doesn’t Hurt to Try,” we have “Neither fawn nor fauna could produce the familiar melody from its lot.” Besides the line being incompressible, the logical equivalent of “Neither fawn nor fauna” is “Neither flounder nor fish.”

Free verse provides an escape from the binds of structure, but it still requires rhythm, and reverence for diction. Neither of which can be found here.

A line from “Doesn’t Hurt to Try” might best describe the author’s work:

“I am a poet who still has much to learn.”

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

Format/Typo Issues:

None

Rating: *** Three Stars

Reviewed by: Sam Waite

Approximate word count: 16-17,000 words

Review: Hashtag Queer: LGBTQ+ Creative Anthology, Volume 3 by Various

Genre: Short Story Anthology/Poetry/LGBTQ

Description:

“Still all-queer all the time, Hashtag Queer, Volume 3 presents even more short fiction, nonfiction, poetry and scripts all written by &/or about LGBTQ+ people from around the world. Includes work by two writers from India, where being gay was only just legalized less than a year ago. Volume 3 features 30 pieces by writers from around the world and across the rainbow spectrum of sexuality and gender-identity. Topics and themes explored include social justice, personal empowerment, magical realism, asexuality, gender-transitioning, aging, religion, friendship, death, parenting, Houdini and Batman, as well as love (of course.)”

Author:

A variety of authors from the LGBTQ+ community, mostly from around the US, but including at least one from India.

Appraisal:

My reasons for reading vary, but fall into a few categories. One of the big ones is the opportunity to put myself in the position of someone unlike me with the hope that by doing so I’ll understand them better. While members of the LGBT+ community would approach these stories from an entirely different angle, for me, it was this increased understanding that I hoped for when I decided to give this book a try. In many ways it delivered beyond expectations. I’m not much for poetry or reading scripts, but the short fiction and nonfiction in this collection definitely expanded my horizons, giving me some new perspectives on sexual and gender identity and what it is like for those who fall elsewhere on the spectrum than I do.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Some adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 60-65,000 words

Review: Garden Metamorphosis by Smoky Zeidel

Genre: Poetry

Description:

“In the midst of a confusing and frightening world, Smoky Zeidel remains true to form with her poetry, gently reminding us to close out the superfluous and remember that which is sacred. Garden Metamorphosis is both a love song to Mother Earth, and a celebration of the cycle of life.”

Author:

“Smoky Zeidel is a novelist and poet, whose love of the natural world is thematic in all she writes. She taught writing and creativity workshops for many years at venues throughout the Midwest before succumbing to her bohemian urges and moving to Southern California. Her work has earned her five nominations for the prestigious Pushcart Prize. Smoky lives in the Coachella Valley, which is part of the vast Colorado Desert in Southern California, with her husband Scott, two cats, and a Chihuahua named Tufa (who considers herself the Boss of Everything). She is an avid desert gardener, an orchid grower, and monarch caterpillar rancher.”

Appraisal:

A collection of 25 poems plus a “bonus” short story that fits the theme of the poems which, as the description says, is a “celebration of the cycle of life.” With a few exceptions I’d describe it as observing nature and the outdoors.

I’m not sure if I’ve ever read a book of poetry before this. Sure, I’ve read a random poem thrown in at the start of a novel or a limerick on the bathroom wall, but I don’t think I’ve ever sat down with the intent of reading an entire book of poetry before, let alone with the intent of writing a review once I was done. However, I did review music for a website where all of the reviewers, myself included, tended to focus on the lyrics. About two poems in it struck me that the same things that make a good song lyric are what makes a good poem. Yeah, Homer Simpson is reading this and saying, “well d’oh.”

A good poem or song lyric has to say a lot with few words. It needs to have enough detail to put the reader or listener in a certain place mentally or emotionally, while leaving enough blank spaces for them to fill in, so they can make it their own. It needs to have a catchy rhythm and, in the case of a poem, you can’t even use that guitar or fiddle solo to help you out. The poems in this collection did all of that. And more. If you’re a gardener or a fan of the outdoors, especially if you’ve spent time in the desert southwest, you’ll be captured by these poems for sure. Others, you’ll get a glimpse of what you’ve been missing.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 9-10,000 words