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4.27 AVERAGE
4.27 AVERAGE
challenging
inspiring
reflective
Amanda Gorman’s debut collection is a brilliant and smart compilation of pieces that speak to our time. Every word, phrasing, and the pacing matches the long drawn out struggle for harmony over the course of American history. Even the formatting and groupings are adept at encompassing the set and setting for a whole generation. I am grateful to know and have read this first collection of the current Poet Laureate. Someone who has memorialized precious moments so early in her prime.
This collection is heady in all the right ways and yet still accessible to anyone open enough to take a look. Gorman cleverly places references to broader discussions utilizing footnotes and similar to direct us to further reading that will only have you circling back again for another pass at the same poem. Each pass through unearths new meaning with additional contact provided by the outside reading. If this is what we get in her initial effort I cannot wait to see what comes next.
Most importantly, you should know that this is not a typical collection of poems. It’s a carefully put together retrospective, historical analysis, and time capsule. Amanda Gorman draws on various sources and her own beautiful creations to create a tapestry of what America is, has been, and could become. Key moments in America’s history are the brush strokes on the canvass of America’s promise. Too many brushstrokes are represented in blood, and not enough in hope.
This collection is heady in all the right ways and yet still accessible to anyone open enough to take a look. Gorman cleverly places references to broader discussions utilizing footnotes and similar to direct us to further reading that will only have you circling back again for another pass at the same poem. Each pass through unearths new meaning with additional contact provided by the outside reading. If this is what we get in her initial effort I cannot wait to see what comes next.
Most importantly, you should know that this is not a typical collection of poems. It’s a carefully put together retrospective, historical analysis, and time capsule. Amanda Gorman draws on various sources and her own beautiful creations to create a tapestry of what America is, has been, and could become. Key moments in America’s history are the brush strokes on the canvass of America’s promise. Too many brushstrokes are represented in blood, and not enough in hope.
fast-paced
I will read this again and again and again. Such a voice!
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
A lovely collection. I really wanted to feel hopeful about the future, and at least this poem collection tried to bring that feeling, even if I can't muster it myself.
Her work speaks to me. I enjoy the way she manipulates words, especially the sounds of words, and the nuances of grammar and punctuation. Do I reflect all of what she writes? No, but I don’t have to in order to appreciate her gifts and be uplifted and inspired regardless.
Voorgedragen vind ik het echt heel goed werken, maar op papier wordt dit voor mij écht snel saai. Het enjambement is zó niet spannend, daardoor gaat het sleuren en dat leidt maar af van de boodschap. Ook voelt het vaak als gelegenheidspoëzie en het zal op de desbetreffende gelegenheden (inauguraties, demonstraties) fantastisch klinken, maar daarbuiten wordt het overdadig en veel van hetzelfde.
Beautiful and heartbreaking thoughts on what it meant to live through an (ongoing) pandemic, especially as a divided people. Privilege keeps many from seeing how marginalized groups bear the brunt of every heartbreak.
