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maddie_orart's review
4.0
I have a whole bag full of Sharpies of every color, and I use them to doodle all over my notebooks, sketchbooks, my hands, and pretty much anything I can doodle on. But I have never used my Sharpies to blackout a poem before, and after reading this book, I know I’m going to try. Newspaper Blackout is really fun to read, and I think everyone should give it a try because you don’t have to love poetry to enjoy this book. The poems are short, witty and while I don’t love ALL of them, I find a lot of them quite relatable.
What I like most about this book is actually not the poems, but the technique the author used to make them. It’s basically recycling, right? When I recycle old newspapers, I make picture frames or papier–mâché. When Austin Kleon recycles old newspapers, he makes fun poems. Even though this method has been around since the 1760s, this book is the first one I’ve ever read. So now, I’m going to look for more, and maybe read this one again :)
What I like most about this book is actually not the poems, but the technique the author used to make them. It’s basically recycling, right? When I recycle old newspapers, I make picture frames or papier–mâché. When Austin Kleon recycles old newspapers, he makes fun poems. Even though this method has been around since the 1760s, this book is the first one I’ve ever read. So now, I’m going to look for more, and maybe read this one again :)
tangleroot_eli's review
inspiring
A pretty fun introduction to blackout poetry, if you're not familiar with the form. Several of the poems aged poorly, and I wouldn't have felt good about others even if I'd read the book right when it was published. Kleon's younger self sure was interested in women as sexual objects, rather than people, a mindset I hope he's grown out of.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Gun violence, Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Homophobia, Colonisation, and Alcohol
Moderate: Toxic masculinity Minor: Environmental degradationreadsforlove's review
3.5
A lot of the poems were hard to follow and/or grammatically incorrect which bugged me, but by and large this was a fun, creative, and beautiful collection of poetry!
samharnold's review
inspiring
fast-paced
4.0
Having read 1000s of books, I love it when a book or writer does something different. This is no exception as it is a collection of poems written from blacking words out in newspaper articles.
The author then takes this one step further by showing us all how to complete blackout poetry, which I can't wait to have a try with.
The author then takes this one step further by showing us all how to complete blackout poetry, which I can't wait to have a try with.
reba_reads_books's review
3.0
I've read Kleon's blog and have done blackout poetry myself for years, so it's a wonder it's taken me this long to read his published black out poetry. It was interesting how the first half read like a memoir and the last half read like micro-fiction. I loved about ten poems overall, so that puts this book at 3 stars for me. I recommend his blog.
ogreart's review
4.0
I have followed Kleon's blog for a couple of years now. Seeing these poems all collected in this book was not a letdown. The way he can find poems in random pages of a newspaper is remarkable. A thoroughly enjoyable read.
mitchosaur's review
1.0
These poems didn't do anything for me. I love the idea of blackout poetry, but these ones weren't as good as I was expecting.