Genre: Poetry

Sinéad Morrissey's latest collection acts as the metaphorical scales for the worlds political, economical and down-right sensible issues not only in the modern era but throughout time itself.

It is clear to see from the outset how On Balance has become one of the leading collections in the world of poetry and how it won the 2017 Forward Prize and shortlisted for the Costa Book Awards 2017. 

Morrissey has been extremely creative in her selection of topics to cover within the narrative make-up of each piece. The book itself seems to glide effortlessly from one issue to the next.

Her use of imagery within every piece is thought-provoking and striking making me consider every element used in their construction.

I liked how each piece enhanced not only the topics/issues it discussed but also the way that it made me consider and perceive each subject in new ways.

Sinéad's writing style flows effortlessly and uses technical devices to enhance each piece methodically but with done so with ease and finesse. 

So, I gave this book five out of five stars because I enjoyed it immensely and it had everything I could possibly want from a collection of poetry. I will definitely be following Sinéad's work a lot more closely and I most certainly look forward to seeing what comes next from her...

Genre: Poetry

​Jo Shapcott shows off her 'poetic prowess' with this collection of imaginative verse. It has everything you could want from a collection of poetry.
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Within 'Of Mutability' are poems utilising strong poetical forms and technical devices to create very powerful imagery.

​It is clear from the outset why this collection won the Costa Book of the Year award in 2010.

What I liked within the collection was it's subtlety. The poems contained various technical devices to enhance the images created in each piece.

I felt like I was standing, as a spectator, while reading these poems, which intensified my experience of Jo's writing.

I had the pleasure of seeing Jo perform some of her poems on the 21st of November at the incredible Keats House Museum - see a video below of Jo performing her poem 'At Guys' :

Genre: Poetry, Children's Poetry

I found Little Lemur Laughing in a local library - and I got very excited seeing as I have had the opportunity to meet and see Joshua perform in person. 

The poems within this collection, however, were much different to what I had seen Joshua perform previously. It's aim was definitely to children - which is evident in both style and composition of the book.

Inside the poems are constructed in a very formulaic way, using a lot of technical devices, such as; alliteration, repetition, questions and similes. By utilising these tools the poems felt very aimed at a much younger audience.

Even though, technically I'm not really the target audience for this publication I really enjoyed it. It flowed really well and I loved the topics covered within it's covers.

Below is a poem written by Joshua in a similar style to the poems included within this collection. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Other works by Joshua include:

• I Don't Like Poetry
• Just Like Me!
• Morris Wants More
• My Grandpa's Beard

I gave this book four out of five stars because it does exactly what it sets out to do - entertain children and a young audience. This is a great collection of poetry for children. If you have children - they'll love it.

I am definitely looking forward to seeing what's next from Joshua...

Genre: F/F, Romance, Female Fiction, LGBTQI, Erotica.

No Other Love is the 6th book in the Pink Bean series by Harper Bliss - and it continued to add to the unique stories already told.

Harper has been clever within this story, as she tackled the dynamics of an 'older' lesbian relationship, but she did this delicately and sensitively. 

I liked the way the story highlighted the struggles and pitfalls faced within a lesbian relationship that has lasted over two decades. 

Jane and Annie are lovely as a couple and I really felt that I got to know both of them really well when reading this book. However, I did feel more of a connection with Jane, due to being a writer myself - I could really relate to her.

One occasion while reading this Jane was telling her story and I got so into it she even inspired me to sit down and write, which I duly did. I had not felt a buzz like that in quite a while.
 
The reason why I only gave this book three out of five stars is due to the fact that I wanted more. I thought there was an opportunity (and still is) to know the story of the beginning of their relationship, like what Harper did with Sheryl and Kristin's story, there is space here to do this.

I'm being greedy here, but as I was reading it I couldn't help but feel that if I knew more of their back story I would have more context to the issues they were facing together in the present.

Harper I think there could be an opportunity for another Pink Bean Novella here! Can't wait to see what happens next...

Genre: Poetry, Chapbooks, History

In this short publication Hannah O'Reilly cleverly expands on the First World War poetry with this very visual and poignant chapbook.

Letter to an Unknown Soldier contains powerful imagery and very touching account of not only the life of a soldier during the First World War, but also of their friends and family and the emotional journey that they also went through.

Hannah is clever with her use of technical devises such as metaphors, similes and repetition. However, I feel her strongest asset within this poem was the simple, but delicate use of rhetorical questions. This makes the reader think and imagine the answers to these questions, therefore they create their own ideas and images of the scene that Hannah sets.

Prior to being introduced to this pamphlet styled book by a colleague before I had never come across the Chapbook styled publication before - and I must say I was not disappointed.

Alban's illustrations compliments the poem extremely well in providing a direction to the answers to the rhetorical questions set-out within the text. The style, theme and artistic style of the drawing cannot be faulted within this little Chapbook.

I gave this book four out of five stars for what this book was trying too and did achieve in its construction. It has uniquely added itself to the vast array of First World War poetry out there by giving it a more contemporary and inquisitive nature, which allowed us to question aspects of a soldiers life previously not considered.

On a whole - I enjoyed this book immensely. So much so that I may even look at producing one myself in the not-so-distant future. Watch this space...

Genre: Poetry

​I should start by saying that Numbered Boxes by Pete 'the Temp' Bearder is so good that I read it in its entirety over the course of one evening. 

When initially reading this I was hit with a complete sense of nostalgia. The way Pete spoke and the topics he talked about ignited memories from my childhood and my school life.

As I progressed through the collection I noticed that became gradually darker and darker, which was a clever move. It subtly shows the way that as we get older the world becomes a more complex place.

Within the collection the poem "Der Tale O Bellingham Yael"  is written in a 'Chaucer' esq. style. Initially I thought that reading this one was going to be a struggle, but I was pleasantly surprised. It flowed, and more than that, it made me concentrate harder and think more about what I was reading in front of me.

I gave this book four out of five stars because it did not try to be more than what it set out to be. Numbered Boxes is a good read filled with lot's of imagery, and metaphors, and symbolism. It will make you think and reminisce. It's definitely a book you want to sit and devour with a good cuppa. 

Give it a go. It's a treat...

Genre: F/F, Romance, Adult-Fiction, Erotica, LGBT

Ok, so, this is the one I have been waiting for with great anticipation. I mentioned to Harper not so long ago that I would love to read more on Amber and Martha's story - and here it is.

This Novella delves right back to the beginning of the Pink Bean series of books, as the journey of love between Amber and Martha is explored.

​Appealing to her fan-base, Harper tells the story of the relationship between two of the groups main characters. It is here that we learn of Amber's past troubles in dating and forming relationships.

But we also get a deeper glimpse into Martha, who initially intended for Micky, by Sheryl, has that instant spark of attraction to Amber, which is undeniable - even in the first pink bean book, No Strings Attached.

This book was written by Harper in such a way that, as with all the other books in the series, allowed me as the reader to simply sit back and enjoy. It's effortless reading, which in the hum-drum of life is actually a lovely way to unwind.

The characters were first introduced, and have been a constant, throughout the series, so there was no need to familiarise and get to know new personas. It felt like I was reading about current friends - there was a familiarity with them, which was comforting.

My reasoning for the four out of five stars is due predominantly for the lack of depth, not that I didn't enjoy this book. The complete opposite. I loved it. I just felt like I needed a bit more. For instance, I would have liked Martha's story to be explored more thoroughly. However, I do understand the limitations that the 'Novella' style imposes - perhaps this would have been better as a standalone rather than a short sub-story. Anyway, I enjoyed it a lot and it makes me wonder what's next in store for the Pink Bean​ clan...

Genre: F/F, Adult Fiction, Romance, Erotica, LGBT

In the latest instalment in the Pink Bean series, Water Under Bridges, we explore not only the creation of a new relationship between Mia Miller and Louise Hamilton, but so much more than that.

What Harper does so well within this book is use the main genre of Romance and F/F to comment on and tackle a highly sensitive subject of bullying.

This is a topic that many of us have either experienced or witnessed, but in this narrative Harper examines the longer lasting effects that it can have on a person. Oh, and this is not just for the person being bullied, but also the bully themselves.

Skilfully and rather surprisingly I found myself feeling sorry and drawn to Mia in this story. You could see that the mistakes of her past clearly weighed heavily on her now, which makes this stand out from other pieces of fiction that contain a bully-type narrative.

I liked both characters, which is strange considering the past behaviour of Mia, but I really urged them to get together, which I knew they would - as per the genre dictates, but I did love their journey to get together. As the saying goes, "there's a thin line between love and hate" and I think Harper has explored and used this brilliantly.

This book was given five-out-of-five stars purely for the bravery and ingenuity shown by Harper in putting this together and publishing it. It's a fine piece of fiction that goes deeper than the genre it follows. Such a superb job and a credit to the 'Pink Bean' series. As usual I look forward to seeing how the series progresses in subsequent books...

Genre: Poetry, Real Life

First of all, this is not just a 'poetry book' - it is so much more than that, it is a poetic encyclopedia of the fight of women across the whole world.

I wanted to be thorough when reading this so when doing this there were many times where I had to put the book down after reading certain segments just so I could process it all.

​One of the more harder hitting facts, which made me stop and go, "DAMN" was the following sentence/passage from the book:​

​"It was in 2016 that women were finally considered as 'mammals' and not 'objects' in Saudi Arabia."

​One piece of advice when reading this book - 'read it cover to cover' because trust me you do not want to miss a bit of this. Plus, by reading all of the references at the end of the book you'll get much needed context to each of the pieces - making them stand out even more.

What is staggering in this collection of poetry is the vast number of really sensitive subject areas covered - from rape and murder, to child abuse and FGM (female genital mutilation). It's hard hitting stuff covered sensitively and passionately.

​It is this passion that gives this collection its edge. The passion evoked in this book brings out raw and strong emotions as Joelle skilfully tells the tales of these women and their fight for freedom, justice and equality.

Joelle cleverly constructs this book in such a way that in a weird way it doesn't feel like you're reading a poetry collection. For instance, there are pieces of prose, journalism and even segments taken from social media posts. However, the one thing that they all have in common is the poetic themes that run through with the use of metaphors and staggering imagery.

I gave this the highest number of stars I could possibly give (and trust me if I could have given more I would have) in five out of five stars. My reason for this is quite simple - I implore anyone to construct such a volume of work that makes a reader have to put it down every so often in order to comprehend the magnitude of what they have just read. Honestly, this is one of the most expressive, passionate and poignant pieces of poetry I have ever read. If you read anything this year - it has to be this!

Genre: Poetry

Do not be fooled by the size of this pamphlet collection of poetry - To Sweeten Bitter by Raymond Antrobus contains some extremely powerful and emotive poetry that grips both your mind and soul.

​Within this collection Ray clearly explores the emotions of grief after the loss of his father, which is very hard hitting. He looks at varying angels throughout the collection - even commenting on how it has effected other loved ones around him. For instance in his poem "To Say".

What is also noticeable within this pamphlet is the journey that Ray is taking. In loosing his father he is on the path to finding himself, by examining his routes and reflecting on memories and experiences of himself and his loved ones.

The poems are written in varying styles and rhyming schemes which provides the collection with enough variety to keep the reader enthralled and engaged with it's words and verse.

Below is a video of Ray performing a poem from the collection entitled: Jamaican British - as part of the 'Chill Pill Shorts' series:

My reasoning behind awarding this collection five out of five stars is predominantly due in part to the way it made me feel when reading it. I felt like I was travelling with Ray to all of the places and experiencing all of the emotions that he was going through. It really hit at my heart strings - just such a wonderful collection of poetry. A must read...