Rating – 4/5 | Genre – Poetry
I’ve said before, poetry has never really been something I actively seek out to read or listen to. However, there has been the odd collection that I’ve managed to enjoy, even if it just includes just one or two poems that I like. Now, has been the time when I thought I’d give it another go. My friend gifted me this collection for my birthday; at first I wasn’t sure what to think, but the below quote kind of sold it for me…
The world could be truly beautiful and magical place to be, if every single person sat down and opened their souls to each other in poetry.
So, thats what I did. During the sunny bank-holiday afternoon I decided to sit and open my soul to this collection of poems. Was I expecting a lot? No, but being in lockdown I couldn’t expect the day to get any worse.
Initial reaction…
Turns out sometimes giving new things a chance isn’t always as bad or as worrying as I thought it would be. This might have been the first collection that I related to, in the most melodramatic way possible. Its been a very traumatic and crazy time around the world, and recently I have been feeling rather lost and confused; some of these poems actually helped me understand that.
Of course, there were some that just seemed a tad too cliche or just not for me. But at the end of the day, not everyone can relate to the same thing.
What did I like?
- The Cosmos: no not that actual universe, but the first mini-collection of poems in this anthology, and my favourites of the whole book. It really tied in the overwhelming nature of the universe with the countless feelings we face day to day. It looks at our fears, both of the unkonwn and the known and pulls them together in a beautiful array of uplifting and advisary poems.
- What you are, What you are not: my favourite poem from the Cosmos mini-collection. It was super uplifting and realistic about the wayt we feel about life and ourselves. Sitting in the sun it was refreshing to read something that helped ease my mind.
- Emotionally charged: each poem clearly comes from a place of pure emotion. It goes from sad and angry to happy and reflective. Weirdly, I prefered the poems full of rage, where the writer was venting her raw emotions onto the page with ease. Helped me calm myself down throughout the day.
Overall…
There was no denying that I was unsure what I’d think opening this collection. The title seemed a bit cliche and I’ve never really enjoyed poetry. However, as I read through I found myself really enjoying this collection, there were poems that I felt could’ve been written for me. I could put my own spin on certain poems and feel like I was able to deal with issues I’d been facing the past couple weeks.
Dare I say that I think this collection actually moved me into giving poetry more of a chance. It definitely concinced me to give Nikita’s other collection of poems a chance, I just need to get round to writing that review. I think I need to have a good proper search for good poetry that I’ll enjoy like this.
The Next Big Opinion 