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A review by rhi
Please Pick Me by Reina Regina
4.0
Just from the dedication I knew this was going to be the book for me. In the foreword, Reina talks about that feeling of being wanted, and how it’s in all of us. Even this reads like poetry, and it captured my feelings in such a gorgeously heartbreaking way. Please Pick Me is a collection for anyone who has ever felt like they wanted someone so badly, for anyone who has loved and loved and loved, for anyone who has given so much only for it to be snatched away – and this is something we can all relate to.
These are poems about love in a roundabout way, but overwhelmingly love in all it’s forms. Fresh romance, acceptance, abandonment, intimacy, vulnerability, and self love are all explored, and Please Pick Me shows how they are so closely intertwined together.
Reina has somehow mastering the line between loss and the birth of something new all in one. I didn’t know it was possible to feel hope and grief at the same time, but it’s too late now. At times I forgot I had other things to do in the day, because I was so immersed in these stories.
The illustrations throughout add so much to the poems as well. Sections divide the book into different parts – Flowers, Thorns, Roots, Seeds, and the Epilogue – and these are prefaced with illustrations. The girl in these images is such an accurate representation of the feeling from each poem ‘chapter’, and the way they’ve been grouped matches perfectly. You can see the effort that went into formatting, editing, and all these other small decisions that don’t seem like much, but make it the book it is.
There are so many metaphors with usually mundane household items – like clothes, in one poem, science, tarot cards, astrology, and these added to the simple feel of the poems. Along with the formatting, you don’t need to have read lots of poems to enjoy this. You just need to have loved, and this book will transform how you look at any “boring” item. I know I’ve gotten dressed multiple times and thought of the poem {care instructions}, and it’s that feeling that makes me realise ‘oh. this book was powerful.’
This is the kind of impact it will have on your life. Subtly creeping up on you until it’s too late, and you realise you can let go. You don’t realise what it’s doing until after. The world feels lighter, somehow.
Some of my favourites were {two writers}, {six times we were fated and one time we weren’t}, {mercy living}, {the science of your existence}, {love letters from the Major Arcana}, and finally, the epilogue. Every poem is gorgeous, but these are the ones that I felt so deeply, I went back to reread later.
I really enjoyed this book, and I hope you do as well. It’s raw and honest and open, and that’s what makes it so good – it’s real. Thank you to Reina for writing this, and for reaching out for this review ❤
Thank you to the author for reaching out and providing me with a copy of this book! This did not affect my opinion in any way. All quotes may differ in final publication.
“and the only way you know to get love back is to give as much of it away as you possibly can”
These are poems about love in a roundabout way, but overwhelmingly love in all it’s forms. Fresh romance, acceptance, abandonment, intimacy, vulnerability, and self love are all explored, and Please Pick Me shows how they are so closely intertwined together.
Reina has somehow mastering the line between loss and the birth of something new all in one. I didn’t know it was possible to feel hope and grief at the same time, but it’s too late now. At times I forgot I had other things to do in the day, because I was so immersed in these stories.
The illustrations throughout add so much to the poems as well. Sections divide the book into different parts – Flowers, Thorns, Roots, Seeds, and the Epilogue – and these are prefaced with illustrations. The girl in these images is such an accurate representation of the feeling from each poem ‘chapter’, and the way they’ve been grouped matches perfectly. You can see the effort that went into formatting, editing, and all these other small decisions that don’t seem like much, but make it the book it is.
“the game was most certainly on, and for me, it was all over.”
There are so many metaphors with usually mundane household items – like clothes, in one poem, science, tarot cards, astrology, and these added to the simple feel of the poems. Along with the formatting, you don’t need to have read lots of poems to enjoy this. You just need to have loved, and this book will transform how you look at any “boring” item. I know I’ve gotten dressed multiple times and thought of the poem {care instructions}, and it’s that feeling that makes me realise ‘oh. this book was powerful.’
This is the kind of impact it will have on your life. Subtly creeping up on you until it’s too late, and you realise you can let go. You don’t realise what it’s doing until after. The world feels lighter, somehow.
Some of my favourites were {two writers}, {six times we were fated and one time we weren’t}, {mercy living}, {the science of your existence}, {love letters from the Major Arcana}, and finally, the epilogue. Every poem is gorgeous, but these are the ones that I felt so deeply, I went back to reread later.
“growing apart is still growth; and perhaps letting go means embracing this truth”
I really enjoyed this book, and I hope you do as well. It’s raw and honest and open, and that’s what makes it so good – it’s real. Thank you to Reina for writing this, and for reaching out for this review ❤
Thank you to the author for reaching out and providing me with a copy of this book! This did not affect my opinion in any way. All quotes may differ in final publication.