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wmmcmanlypants's review against another edition
3.0
*3.5. Still not as good as Some Ether, I think. But, I enjoyed this far more than Captain Asks for a Show of Hands. I feel like this book is more like the stuff I fell in love with in his debut. (Also, though, My Feelings? That title is so sad after his previous books... Cathedral of Salt or Gravity or other poems would have made more interesting titles, but who am I)
shanviolinlove's review against another edition
2.0
While I certainly enjoy the books of poems that Graywolf Press publish, such as Albert Goldbarth's Selfish, and though Nick Flynn does comment on many momentous thoughts and events--both in his life and in the world surrounding him--I failed to appreciate this collection of work and wasn't moved by any of his writing until Parts Four and Five. There are some good things here. "Marathon" has some beautiful lines, and "My Blindness" is daring. Overall, however, I found him floundering more than presenting something profound and wonder if this is a result of an underdeveloped idea. Misquoting/misunderstanding biblical Scripture on which he bases several poems, the prosy synopses of films he has seen, poems about writing (a big "NO" in my book)--all left me emotionally nonplussed and slightly curious how such meandering thoughts could have been so widely acclaimed. On a line-edit level, the line breaks seem uninspired; sentences, more like, rather than evocative or playful lines with carefully placed enjambments.
Flynn is honest in his title, My Feelings. As a reader I pick up on where most of his thoughts gravitate toward: his mother's suicide, to be sure, as well as his daughter, and his place in this world. I would just rather see him eschew ultimately prosy attempts of being "clever" or "poetic" and really open up, show us his feelings, and let the natural poetry of those feelings surface.
Flynn is honest in his title, My Feelings. As a reader I pick up on where most of his thoughts gravitate toward: his mother's suicide, to be sure, as well as his daughter, and his place in this world. I would just rather see him eschew ultimately prosy attempts of being "clever" or "poetic" and really open up, show us his feelings, and let the natural poetry of those feelings surface.
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