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bethtabler's review
5.0
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest review.
I have to admit that I was afraid of poetry, or maybe more aptly put I didn't understand poetry. What was the big deal? I now believe I a starting to understand. There is so much more than I understood. I want to learn, to grow, and understand now. All of these essays, each one on a different poem, are based on Adam Sol's blog. If poetry scares you or fascinates you, this is a worthy read. I know I am going to go out and try and write bad poetry now.
I have to admit that I was afraid of poetry, or maybe more aptly put I didn't understand poetry. What was the big deal? I now believe I a starting to understand. There is so much more than I understood. I want to learn, to grow, and understand now. All of these essays, each one on a different poem, are based on Adam Sol's blog. If poetry scares you or fascinates you, this is a worthy read. I know I am going to go out and try and write bad poetry now.
kitreeds's review
5.0
I picked up this book because I find myself reading poetry collections looking for one poem or line that speaks to me, and I muddle through the rest. This book is essentially a collection of craft lessons and they did what the author promised and gave me a deeper understanding of the mechanics of poetry. I feel like I have a better lens to explore poetry through.
cstefko's review
4.0
4.25 stars
I really enjoyed this book, which is meant to be a field guide to introduce readers to the genre of poetry. I'm not exactly the target audience since I already read and (I like to think) understand poetry well enough on my own, but it was still a fun concept. Sol's enthusiasm for poetry shines through in every essay, despite the varied subject matter. I appreciated that he highlighted a diversity of poets and perspectives, and almost all of these poets were new to me (especially the Canadian ones). I added lots of poets to my Goodreads TBR shelf this week! I particularly enjoyed the essays on the two poems in translation, because I always find the process of translation and how it affects the meaning of the poem to be quite fascinating. If you love poetry like Sol and myself and want to evangelize poetry to someone who's wary of it, this would make an excellent gift, because he definitely makes poetry feel approachable and fun.
I really enjoyed this book, which is meant to be a field guide to introduce readers to the genre of poetry. I'm not exactly the target audience since I already read and (I like to think) understand poetry well enough on my own, but it was still a fun concept. Sol's enthusiasm for poetry shines through in every essay, despite the varied subject matter. I appreciated that he highlighted a diversity of poets and perspectives, and almost all of these poets were new to me (especially the Canadian ones). I added lots of poets to my Goodreads TBR shelf this week! I particularly enjoyed the essays on the two poems in translation, because I always find the process of translation and how it affects the meaning of the poem to be quite fascinating. If you love poetry like Sol and myself and want to evangelize poetry to someone who's wary of it, this would make an excellent gift, because he definitely makes poetry feel approachable and fun.
deedireads's review against another edition
funny
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
5.0
All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.
TL;DR REVIEW:
How a Poem Moves is a friendly, accessible, super-digestible read perfect for anyone who wants practice reading poetry, with a smart, funny professor there to point out things you might have missed.
For you if: You are learning to read poetry more closely or intentionally.
FULL REVIEW:
How a Poem Moves was the third book I picked up in my quest to learn how to read poetry on a deeper level. First was How to Read Poetry Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster, and second was Don’t Read Poetry by Stephanie Burt, both of which were excellent and helpful. This one was absolutely perfect to read next.
How a Poem Moves is basically like a poetry-reading practice book, or like taking a fun class with a smart, funny professor. At only about 200 pages, it contains more than 30 short chapters. Each one presents a single poem at the beginning, and then Adam Sol takes a couple of pages to help point out its brilliance and nuance. It’s sort of like No Fear Shakespeare for poetry, lol.
I really loved how digestible this book was. I actually just picked at it over the course of two months, reading a poem/chapter or two when my brain felt especially curious. Adam Sol is clearly an excellent teacher, and I’m jealous of all the students to get to take classes with him in real life!
If you’re looking for just a little bit of guidance as you practice reading poetry, this book will be perfect for you.
TL;DR REVIEW:
How a Poem Moves is a friendly, accessible, super-digestible read perfect for anyone who wants practice reading poetry, with a smart, funny professor there to point out things you might have missed.
For you if: You are learning to read poetry more closely or intentionally.
FULL REVIEW:
How a Poem Moves was the third book I picked up in my quest to learn how to read poetry on a deeper level. First was How to Read Poetry Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster, and second was Don’t Read Poetry by Stephanie Burt, both of which were excellent and helpful. This one was absolutely perfect to read next.
How a Poem Moves is basically like a poetry-reading practice book, or like taking a fun class with a smart, funny professor. At only about 200 pages, it contains more than 30 short chapters. Each one presents a single poem at the beginning, and then Adam Sol takes a couple of pages to help point out its brilliance and nuance. It’s sort of like No Fear Shakespeare for poetry, lol.
I really loved how digestible this book was. I actually just picked at it over the course of two months, reading a poem/chapter or two when my brain felt especially curious. Adam Sol is clearly an excellent teacher, and I’m jealous of all the students to get to take classes with him in real life!
If you’re looking for just a little bit of guidance as you practice reading poetry, this book will be perfect for you.