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4.37 AVERAGE
4.37 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Sarah’s way with words is always a balm.
adventurous
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
emotional
hopeful
reflective
Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for selecting me to receive an advanced copy.
Overall, I can appreciate that this was some beautiful poetry, but the style of it just wasn’t for me. Knowing now that she is a spoken word poet makes the feel of most of the poems make a lot more sense. I personally struggle with poems that read like a run-on sentence. That’s just my personal thing and is not a comment on the quality of the poems themselves. I think someone who appreciates poetry more as a genre and doesn’t have that same comprehension issue would greatly enjoy this collection.
Overall, I can appreciate that this was some beautiful poetry, but the style of it just wasn’t for me. Knowing now that she is a spoken word poet makes the feel of most of the poems make a lot more sense. I personally struggle with poems that read like a run-on sentence. That’s just my personal thing and is not a comment on the quality of the poems themselves. I think someone who appreciates poetry more as a genre and doesn’t have that same comprehension issue would greatly enjoy this collection.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A Little Daylight Left had me floored from the very first poem.
Kay crafts such beautiful imagery for us with her words, snapshots of experience, connection, love, sex. There are life altering, heartbreaking moments. Thought spirals that seem circular, but we're going somewhere. I promise. She makes even the most mundane of moments shine with hidden light. From dreams, to cooking, to family road trips, there is magic in these acts.
While reading the poem Sharpshooters, I recall thinking that her parents' love for photography must have helped to shape her ability to paint such beautiful pictures with words. Then in the very next poem she says herself, "I learned to write the way my parents photograph—looking for light."
Sarah
I am reading to myself unaccompanied
in silence
I have no special accent
just your voice in my head as I read
Thank you for reminding me that I still need to take that road trip with my dad up the coast to hunt for beautiful, dilapidated barns to photograph.
In the spirit of full disclosure, I received a copy of A Little Daylight Left by Sarah Kay from NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review.
Kay crafts such beautiful imagery for us with her words, snapshots of experience, connection, love, sex. There are life altering, heartbreaking moments. Thought spirals that seem circular, but we're going somewhere. I promise. She makes even the most mundane of moments shine with hidden light. From dreams, to cooking, to family road trips, there is magic in these acts.
While reading the poem Sharpshooters, I recall thinking that her parents' love for photography must have helped to shape her ability to paint such beautiful pictures with words. Then in the very next poem she says herself, "I learned to write the way my parents photograph—looking for light."
Sarah
I am reading to myself unaccompanied
in silence
I have no special accent
just your voice in my head as I read
Thank you for reminding me that I still need to take that road trip with my dad up the coast to hunt for beautiful, dilapidated barns to photograph.
In the spirit of full disclosure, I received a copy of A Little Daylight Left by Sarah Kay from NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-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
I wish I could remember my introduction to Sarah Kay, but I can't pinpoint it. My best guess is it was from a spoken word with Phil Kaye, maybe "When Love Arrives" or "An Origin Story". I'd be willing to bet the AP Lit Facebook groups were where my love for her was planted.
A Little Daylight Left is a collection in three parts with a poem and an epigraph to set the stage. Part I features 11 poems that center around a theme of fear being learned rather than innate, sometimes borne of experience or crafted to protect oneself. Part II features 19 poems and highlights the bravery it takes to maintain a sense of softness and vulnerability with those we love, have loved, and hope to love one day. Part III contains 14 poems if I can count that highlight human resiliency that can only continue really through community and a willingness to continue trying despite it all.
There were several poems that stood out to me, but if I had to pick one from each section it would be: "Across the Room", "Orange", and "The Minister of Loneliness". There were many more that I could name, but suffice it to say, I believe this collection offers something for everyone and I cannot wait to put this on my shelf at home and in the classroom for students to explore.
This review is possible because of the generosity of Random House/The Dial Press via Netgalley for their generous gifting of an ARC of this gorgeous collection.
A Little Daylight Left is a collection in three parts with a poem and an epigraph to set the stage. Part I features 11 poems that center around a theme of fear being learned rather than innate, sometimes borne of experience or crafted to protect oneself. Part II features 19 poems and highlights the bravery it takes to maintain a sense of softness and vulnerability with those we love, have loved, and hope to love one day. Part III contains 14 poems if I can count that highlight human resiliency that can only continue really through community and a willingness to continue trying despite it all.
There were several poems that stood out to me, but if I had to pick one from each section it would be: "Across the Room", "Orange", and "The Minister of Loneliness". There were many more that I could name, but suffice it to say, I believe this collection offers something for everyone and I cannot wait to put this on my shelf at home and in the classroom for students to explore.
This review is possible because of the generosity of Random House/The Dial Press via Netgalley for their generous gifting of an ARC of this gorgeous collection.
I grew up watching Sarah Kay on Button Poetry, and her poetry is such a staple in the Spoken Word poetry world. I have a bias coming into this book.
I really loved it. There's usually something missing with spoken word when it's written, but I don't feel that way with this collection. Kay is a poet through and through.
This will definitely be on my list for best poetry of 2025.
I really loved it. There's usually something missing with spoken word when it's written, but I don't feel that way with this collection. Kay is a poet through and through.
This will definitely be on my list for best poetry of 2025.