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liketheriver's review
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment and Eating disorder
kxttx's review against another edition
5.0
something about this collection deeply resonates with me. it made me feel all the grief and nostalgia and strength (and fear and hatred and love and anger) i needed to feel right now.
sugar_b0nes's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
3.5
good vibes : lacked substance
ivyninareads's review
3.0
A 3.75 stars I would say :)
This collection of poetry was beautiful, there were lots of beautiful words and beautiful images. In saying that, beautiful is probably not actually the best descriptor considering the constant reference to flesh and blood and bones and torn skin, but these words were put together in such a way that made them quite lyrical and beautiful to read.
However, I saw someone else describe this collection of poetry as having not much substance, only vibes, but the vibes were good – and I'd have to agree. I think that some of the poems leaned into the abstract but in a way that felt more alienating rather than deeply personal in the way that I feel that poetry should be. There were moments where it just felt like the words were floating through space and not really gripped on to the visceral emotions that their imagery was trying to conjure.
Despite this, there was still much to love about the collection. The visual storytelling across the board was a highlight for me, with gorgeous photographs and interesting use of font and text arrangement on the page keeping me wrapped up in the aforementioned good vibes.
I feel as though part of the issue that I had with this collection was a very personal thing and that was that I consumed it far too quickly than what might have been intended. As I flick through the poems, even now as I'm writing this review, I can see that there are some that may have become lost or felt repetitive at the time due to how fast I ran through the pages – definitely think this collection is better enjoyed as a slower read. One that I'll definitely have to come back to!
To my understanding, Warren is currently working on a novel and this collection has only made me more excited to see what she does next, particularly in a more narrative form as it was her more grounded and narrative-based poems that I enjoyed the most! On the whole, an enjoyable read!
This collection of poetry was beautiful, there were lots of beautiful words and beautiful images. In saying that, beautiful is probably not actually the best descriptor considering the constant reference to flesh and blood and bones and torn skin, but these words were put together in such a way that made them quite lyrical and beautiful to read.
However, I saw someone else describe this collection of poetry as having not much substance, only vibes, but the vibes were good – and I'd have to agree. I think that some of the poems leaned into the abstract but in a way that felt more alienating rather than deeply personal in the way that I feel that poetry should be. There were moments where it just felt like the words were floating through space and not really gripped on to the visceral emotions that their imagery was trying to conjure.
Despite this, there was still much to love about the collection. The visual storytelling across the board was a highlight for me, with gorgeous photographs and interesting use of font and text arrangement on the page keeping me wrapped up in the aforementioned good vibes.
I feel as though part of the issue that I had with this collection was a very personal thing and that was that I consumed it far too quickly than what might have been intended. As I flick through the poems, even now as I'm writing this review, I can see that there are some that may have become lost or felt repetitive at the time due to how fast I ran through the pages – definitely think this collection is better enjoyed as a slower read. One that I'll definitely have to come back to!
To my understanding, Warren is currently working on a novel and this collection has only made me more excited to see what she does next, particularly in a more narrative form as it was her more grounded and narrative-based poems that I enjoyed the most! On the whole, an enjoyable read!
thekaitlinreads's review
2.0
Warren is clearly well-read and has a lot of potential as a writer, but On Sun Swallowing falls flat. The prose reads as unedited journal entries rather than poetry, and the (mediocre) photographs provide no value; instead it feels gimmicky. I appreciate her collection having a general theme of religious trauma and father complex, but it becomes tediously repetitive. While her poetry is not "bad" (i.e Gabbie Hanna), it is shallow. It is a carefully curated collection for the dark academia girlies, or anyone that has made a TikTok video called "Hot Girl Books". If Warren abandons her obsession with aesthetic, I believe her next body of work could be quite good.
theghostofyou's review
i was a big fan of the overarching themes of this book. many poems felt repetitive or attempting to reach a certain aesthetic however, and i think that made it lose a certain realness. i saw her live, reading some of these and some of her unreleased poems and it made me understand them and see them in a totally different light. when i read this in my stale room, i felt this book completely different than when i heard it read to me in her australian accent in a candle lit church full of artists and writers.
i am a fan of her, but i am more excited for her future novels and poems. i see the potential, i will support and follow her all the way there, but this collection certainly felt repetitive/ inauthentic. of course that isnt fully my place to say, perhaps i simply dont relate to her experiences enough to “get it”.
good job dakota, good job pure nowhere, im excited to see where this takes you
i am a fan of her, but i am more excited for her future novels and poems. i see the potential, i will support and follow her all the way there, but this collection certainly felt repetitive/ inauthentic. of course that isnt fully my place to say, perhaps i simply dont relate to her experiences enough to “get it”.
good job dakota, good job pure nowhere, im excited to see where this takes you
natlren's review
I think that this is one of those collections that can't be rated because of how autobiographical it feels. While there was a lot of things that I resonated heavily with in On Sun Swallowing, it ultimately still felt like a glimpse into Warren's mind and I find myself being unable to reduce it to nothing more than a handful of stars and a review.
This collection of poems and prose will appeal to people who, like me, enjoy themes of girlhood, godhood, religious trauma, and strained parental relationships. I also appreciated On Sun Swallowing for its quiet nods to Lady Macbeth Syndrome and OCD -- both subjects were handled masterfully with gorgeous, gorgeous language.
All in all, I'm glad I picked up these poems when I did, though I suspect they would have felt timely regardless of when I read them.
This collection of poems and prose will appeal to people who, like me, enjoy themes of girlhood, godhood, religious trauma, and strained parental relationships. I also appreciated On Sun Swallowing for its quiet nods to Lady Macbeth Syndrome and OCD -- both subjects were handled masterfully with gorgeous, gorgeous language.
All in all, I'm glad I picked up these poems when I did, though I suspect they would have felt timely regardless of when I read them.