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jukebugging's review against another edition
2.0
not to be dramatic but how did this get published. it literally feels like the author just scrambled the same five poems and called it a new poem every 5 pages
daiinty's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
3.0
“But to be a poet without being tragic would have been quite a shame.” — Noor Unnahar
years ago i was gifted unnahar’s guided poetry journal and was definitely intrigued when seeing her name on this poetry collection. i absolutely love the concept of the poems having companion collages scattered throughout the collection. i always find myself looking for innovation when it comes to poetry. unnahar’s poetry in this collection captures a mournful solitude. themes of grief, loneliness, and being far from one’s family and home are extremely prominent. i adored all of the subtle calls to unnahar’s pakistani culture that really made these pieces feel viscerally personal. within the onslaught of generic, base level poetry books being mass published, this felt like it had more substance. though, i will say, there were times i do feel some of the poems pandered to the “tumblr poet aesthetic”. while i do appreciate cohesiveness within poetry collections, i feel that with the themes of grief, loneliness and home being as strong as they were, i found that some of the poem began to bleed together and i was wishing for a bit more variety.
favorite poems:
“a personal tragedy”
“a reluctant heir”
“alter ego: an artist at work”
“when asked how they make art, the artist said”
“part-everything daughter”
sugar_book_fairy's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
3.5
seedy's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
5.0
“the city is forgetting you which is to say you should return home” are u JOE KING
octobergirlyyy's review against another edition
2.0
this collection was very repetitive and while some argue there was good diction, I believe it was lacking in that department as well :( might sound harsh, but it’s not writing that a reader can connect to in any meaningful way. I appreciate the the topic that Unnahar wrote about, but this collection could have undergone more revision to remove the extreme repetition in words and theme.
A few highlights that promise Unnahar has great potential as a poet:
“She never leaves the house without counting her ribs”
“cobalt sparrow on a withering tree”
“An artist not making art is forgetting the way home again.”
“Who would I be if not a cinnamon body
part salt water part everything daughter”
A few highlights that promise Unnahar has great potential as a poet:
“She never leaves the house without counting her ribs”
“cobalt sparrow on a withering tree”
“An artist not making art is forgetting the way home again.”
“Who would I be if not a cinnamon body
part salt water part everything daughter”
mattinthebooks's review against another edition
2.0
Listen maybe I’m a classics snob.
Actually I’m definitely a classics snob.
But I often find a lot of things to like about modern poetry even if I don’t enjoy the vocabulary and poetic style. Often the themes are utterly consequential and worth considering. And maybe I am not the right audience for this book. I’m definitely not the right audience for this book considering what I read about authorial intent on this collection.
The focus on middle-eastern family? LOVED
The focus on names? Meh
Literally every other concept thrown around? Felt a bit overdone.
Actually I’m definitely a classics snob.
But I often find a lot of things to like about modern poetry even if I don’t enjoy the vocabulary and poetic style. Often the themes are utterly consequential and worth considering. And maybe I am not the right audience for this book. I’m definitely not the right audience for this book considering what I read about authorial intent on this collection.
The focus on middle-eastern family? LOVED
The focus on names? Meh
Literally every other concept thrown around? Felt a bit overdone.
lsparrow's review against another edition
4.0
I really love this poet. Her themes of loneliess, grief and home speak to me. Also i love the sense of Karachi I get from many of her poems
I cant say that all her poems speak to me or are momentous but I love what she does with the form of the poetry. She plays with structure both in the style of the poem and the way to is put on the page. I also love the poetry collage she does. I love the combination of visual art and poetry that is in so much of her work. I look forward to watching her art grow and change over the years to come
I cant say that all her poems speak to me or are momentous but I love what she does with the form of the poetry. She plays with structure both in the style of the poem and the way to is put on the page. I also love the poetry collage she does. I love the combination of visual art and poetry that is in so much of her work. I look forward to watching her art grow and change over the years to come