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steph_k_103's review against another edition
3.0
3.5/5 ⭐️
This is very subjective but I felt like it was too depressing to engage with. Maybe reading it all in one go is a bit much but I felt like it lacked refreshing elements of moments of hope. Yes her meanings were very personal, very traumatic and very sad. But it’s hard to read about grief and loss so consistently to the point where their feelings translate to yourself and consume the rest of your day, as it did me now.
Having said this, some of her poems and some of her lines were just beautifully constructed. I cried from ONE sentence in one of her poems.
Her way with describing a story through metaphors, her reoccurring use of oceanic themes, plus there was no rhyming. I must admit i didn’t understand some poems but when pieces of the story started to fit together it was quite amazing. Oh to be such a talented writer…
Again this is subjective, but maybe I need to revisit this in the future and see if my opinion changes or if I view her words in a different light.
This is very subjective but I felt like it was too depressing to engage with. Maybe reading it all in one go is a bit much but I felt like it lacked refreshing elements of moments of hope. Yes her meanings were very personal, very traumatic and very sad. But it’s hard to read about grief and loss so consistently to the point where their feelings translate to yourself and consume the rest of your day, as it did me now.
Having said this, some of her poems and some of her lines were just beautifully constructed. I cried from ONE sentence in one of her poems.
Her way with describing a story through metaphors, her reoccurring use of oceanic themes, plus there was no rhyming. I must admit i didn’t understand some poems but when pieces of the story started to fit together it was quite amazing. Oh to be such a talented writer…
Again this is subjective, but maybe I need to revisit this in the future and see if my opinion changes or if I view her words in a different light.
julieasp's review against another edition
Everyday the loss of light
The new year comes in, carrying all my language
I do not know if it is bringing or taking away
The new year comes in, carrying all my language
I do not know if it is bringing or taking away
casparb's review against another edition
this one is more Sea I like it arguably more sophisticated I enjoy Aura and Aqua it's a wonderfully precise voice. looking forward to the next Berry though Dear Boy still the one for me
jcampbell's review against another edition
emotional
funny
3.25
The poems are well written and interesting but as someone not currently grieving I found some of the poems hard to relate to.
annisnovels's review against another edition
5.0
Wonderful, touching, profound - devoured it and loved it
laynescherer's review against another edition
4.0
Berry weaves the death of her mother into a haunting collection- a wry voice, the ways grief can morph into strange and unexpected shapes, and nostalgic reflections. Acute aching and longing linked to the past and inevitability of life moving on.
ezravasq's review against another edition
3.0
The writing is good, but it didn't resonate with me. I can see how someone dealing with grief would connect though.
lawerner's review against another edition
5.0
What a powerful, beautiful collection of poetry. This is a new favorite -- so much so that I want to tuck it into my purse to keep it close by me everywhere I go.
isabellediggle's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
2.0
I loved the title - Stranger, Baby - as it conveys so much background, tone and character. Berry's use of the natural world (water, the desert and the trees) was beautiful but not used regularly throughout the poems. The more linear pieces on grief, her mother's funeral and the pity were stand outs. However, some poems just didn't make sense to me. The utilisation of a stream of consciousness many times left me bored, asking, "and?". Overall, this isn't really my brand of poetry.