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eclairedelune's review against another edition
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
heatherd's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.5
Many of these poems are beautiful but I didn't connect with them in the way that I would have liked to. I struggle with poetry so when the words don't hit me in the gut like my optimal poetry experience, the collections often don't work well for me. But I can see the talent in O'Rourke's writing and would be open to trying more of her work.
chillcox15's review against another edition
4.0
When you read a poem from Meghan O'Rourke's collection Sun in Days, you'll probably know what the poem is 'about,' i.e. the death of her mother or her attempts at having a child, the two main topics she bravely confronts here, and there is plenty of verbal artistry at play in the construction of these conspicuous poems. Likewise, O'Rourke signposts much of the intertextual elements of the collection, whether it be to historical figures or to other works, but that doesn't much take away from their power.
ariel937's review against another edition
4.0
4.5*
this was just simply mesmerizing. the writing sucked me in, and i feel personally connected to each of the poems. the poems about her mothers death, her depression, her abortion, her illness was all so raw and blazed across the page like a bolt of electricity. there were so many true lines that i was constantly thinking “me too!!!” - she put the right words together in exactly the perfect way. there were one or two instances when i didn’t connect completely to the poems but all the rest of them (to me) were flawless. i can’t speak on O’Rourke herself because i knew nothing about her aside from what’s shared here, but i did love this little book. i’m not sure if rereading it in the future would make this as impactful, so, for the time being: i likes this. a lot. it
this also made me super interested in reading more on meriwether lewis, so there’s that.
this was just simply mesmerizing. the writing sucked me in, and i feel personally connected to each of the poems. the poems about her mothers death, her depression, her abortion, her illness was all so raw and blazed across the page like a bolt of electricity. there were so many true lines that i was constantly thinking “me too!!!” - she put the right words together in exactly the perfect way. there were one or two instances when i didn’t connect completely to the poems but all the rest of them (to me) were flawless. i can’t speak on O’Rourke herself because i knew nothing about her aside from what’s shared here, but i did love this little book. i’m not sure if rereading it in the future would make this as impactful, so, for the time being: i likes this. a lot. it
this also made me super interested in reading more on meriwether lewis, so there’s that.
cstefko's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars
This collection starts off really strong and slowly loses steam, but I did really appreciate it. Rounding up my star rating for overall quality of writing style, even if there were some individual poems I didn't love (the longer poems were a mixed bag for me, but had some nice moments). O'Rourke tackles some really heavy topics (grief, miscarriage/infertility, chronic pain) and makes them very accessible but still illuminates them in a unique way. (A random aside: I've noticed a trend, if you can call it that, in contemporary poetry where there's an introductory poem all by itself, followed by sections of poems. This is probably the third or fourth time I've seen that in the past year, and I never noticed it before! It's kind of an interesting way to set the tone for the collection, but it's kind of hit or miss whether it actually is effective in that purpose...)
Highlights:
The title poem is a nice meditation on youth/childhood and memory.
These lines from "Mnemonic" are just next level poetry, and I bow to their excellence: "What / have I done with this year of living? / I fretted & fanged, / was a kind of / slang of myself." Get it.
"The Night Where You No Longer Live" is a clever musing on the moment of dying.
"Ever" was one of my favorite poems in the collection, and I love the way she uses repetition to reinforce the frustrating, broken record-like quality of grief.
"Mistaken Self-Portrait as Mother of an Unmade Daughter" has some really poignant observations about existence.
"At Père Lachaise" is just lovely, a bit of melancholy imagination.
Some great lines from "Idiopathic Illness:" "What can be said? I came w/o a warranty. / Stripped of me--or me-ish-ness-- / I was a will in a subpar body. / I waxed toward all that waned."
I usually don't like poems about actual childbirth for reasons, but "Mortals" was the perfect bittersweet description.
I definitely think it's a collection worth checking out, and I will probably read more by O'Rourke in the future.
This collection starts off really strong and slowly loses steam, but I did really appreciate it. Rounding up my star rating for overall quality of writing style, even if there were some individual poems I didn't love (the longer poems were a mixed bag for me, but had some nice moments). O'Rourke tackles some really heavy topics (grief, miscarriage/infertility, chronic pain) and makes them very accessible but still illuminates them in a unique way. (A random aside: I've noticed a trend, if you can call it that, in contemporary poetry where there's an introductory poem all by itself, followed by sections of poems. This is probably the third or fourth time I've seen that in the past year, and I never noticed it before! It's kind of an interesting way to set the tone for the collection, but it's kind of hit or miss whether it actually is effective in that purpose...)
Highlights:
The title poem is a nice meditation on youth/childhood and memory.
These lines from "Mnemonic" are just next level poetry, and I bow to their excellence: "What / have I done with this year of living? / I fretted & fanged, / was a kind of / slang of myself." Get it.
"The Night Where You No Longer Live" is a clever musing on the moment of dying.
"Ever" was one of my favorite poems in the collection, and I love the way she uses repetition to reinforce the frustrating, broken record-like quality of grief.
"Mistaken Self-Portrait as Mother of an Unmade Daughter" has some really poignant observations about existence.
"At Père Lachaise" is just lovely, a bit of melancholy imagination.
Some great lines from "Idiopathic Illness:" "What can be said? I came w/o a warranty. / Stripped of me--or me-ish-ness-- / I was a will in a subpar body. / I waxed toward all that waned."
I usually don't like poems about actual childbirth for reasons, but "Mortals" was the perfect bittersweet description.
I definitely think it's a collection worth checking out, and I will probably read more by O'Rourke in the future.
mariathelibrarian's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.5
with_drea's review against another edition
4.0
This broke my heart in the best of ways. Need to send to a friend who has been struggling of late w/ chronic illness.