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annettebooksofhopeanddreams's review against another edition
4.0
I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Every Saturday or Sunday I scroll through all the available titles on Netgalley and then I pick one to request. And time after time after time this book whispered to me, reached out to me and time after time I picked another book instead. Until I couldn't ignore it any longer.
Let me start with a small disclaimer: The lay out of the e-book provided by Netgalley wasn't perfect and at some moments confusing and messed up. Which is a pity, because when it comes to poems and art we all know that the form is part of the story, just as much as the words are. I'm pretty sure that due to the lay out the book lost a little of its power, but I'm sure that will be totally fixed and perfect once the book is really released.
But even without the perfect lay out, the words still hold a lot of power and ring true. A lot of poems, a lot of words, a lot of sentences, resonated deeply with who I am and who I try to be. I loved how this book made me feel seen, heard and understood. I loved how this book gave me the feeling that who I am and what I feel is totally allowed to exist, that I don't need to change and don't owe anyone apologies.
But, what I loved most, was the view on Aphrodite, who has become a shallow display of how men think a woman representing love should be. This book also highlights her darker sides, her more intelligent sides, all those characteristics that have been erased and forgotten, because it's not female enough. I love how all the wars fought over love are included, the violence and all the different forms of love there can be. Love isn't just sweet and nice. It's fierce and violent too.
It's a lovely and empowering read for every woman who feels she's not female enough or thinks anything is wrong with her.
Every Saturday or Sunday I scroll through all the available titles on Netgalley and then I pick one to request. And time after time after time this book whispered to me, reached out to me and time after time I picked another book instead. Until I couldn't ignore it any longer.
Let me start with a small disclaimer: The lay out of the e-book provided by Netgalley wasn't perfect and at some moments confusing and messed up. Which is a pity, because when it comes to poems and art we all know that the form is part of the story, just as much as the words are. I'm pretty sure that due to the lay out the book lost a little of its power, but I'm sure that will be totally fixed and perfect once the book is really released.
But even without the perfect lay out, the words still hold a lot of power and ring true. A lot of poems, a lot of words, a lot of sentences, resonated deeply with who I am and who I try to be. I loved how this book made me feel seen, heard and understood. I loved how this book gave me the feeling that who I am and what I feel is totally allowed to exist, that I don't need to change and don't owe anyone apologies.
But, what I loved most, was the view on Aphrodite, who has become a shallow display of how men think a woman representing love should be. This book also highlights her darker sides, her more intelligent sides, all those characteristics that have been erased and forgotten, because it's not female enough. I love how all the wars fought over love are included, the violence and all the different forms of love there can be. Love isn't just sweet and nice. It's fierce and violent too.
It's a lovely and empowering read for every woman who feels she's not female enough or thinks anything is wrong with her.
sydreadstoomuch's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
Loved it so much
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
kstanpadg's review against another edition
5.0
i love millennial poetry books and this one is probably one of my favorites
“they vilified want but all of us are still full of it. even me. even still”
“i know why eve stole the fruit. i know why pandora opened the jar. can you really say you don’t?”
“they say i had no childhood. they say i rose from the sea fully formed, forced to bear the weight of other people’s desire”
“we forget what beauty is sometimes and why it’s important
she reads me her personal list of the most beautiful things and there are no people on it
she says…if u were only meant to be beautiful, we wouldn’t have put you down here in the dirt.”
“they vilified want but all of us are still full of it. even me. even still”
“i know why eve stole the fruit. i know why pandora opened the jar. can you really say you don’t?”
“they say i had no childhood. they say i rose from the sea fully formed, forced to bear the weight of other people’s desire”
“we forget what beauty is sometimes and why it’s important
she reads me her personal list of the most beautiful things and there are no people on it
she says…if u were only meant to be beautiful, we wouldn’t have put you down here in the dirt.”
03hannahleigh24's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
hayley22ann's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-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
5.0
This is another stunning collection of poetry!
banananananana's review
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
daria_nedelcu19's review
dark
emotional
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
3.25
hawlaye's review
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
fast-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
4.0
"Not all gods are born.
Plenty of us rise."
I read this entire collection of poetry in one sitting and absolutely fell in love with it. It read like one woman's diary and their experiences in life and society as a female. Readers are faced with discussions on many topics from gender, sexuality, love and hate to abuse and violence.
This was a wonderful and eye opening collection of not only poetry, but art. It was such a beautiful scrapbook of works which invoke so many emotions in the reader. I heavily recommend this to everyone!
"I stand in awe of your survival"
Plenty of us rise."
I read this entire collection of poetry in one sitting and absolutely fell in love with it. It read like one woman's diary and their experiences in life and society as a female. Readers are faced with discussions on many topics from gender, sexuality, love and hate to abuse and violence.
This was a wonderful and eye opening collection of not only poetry, but art. It was such a beautiful scrapbook of works which invoke so many emotions in the reader. I heavily recommend this to everyone!
"I stand in awe of your survival"
katephobic's review against another edition
3.0
This poetry collection aimed to focus on how knowing Aphrodite can heal the wounded feminine and get over trauma, caused by a breakup, internalized homophobia, or SA, all things that the author expressed familiarity with. Something unique about this book is the art in it. There was lots of drawings and writings over pictures, which was a nice idea, but a lot of came off as corny and cheap. However, there are some gems in here, such as “Miscellaneous Thoughts on Love”. I resonated with the theme that love can cause more harm than good when the people involved are not happy with themselves. Unfortunately, the rest of the book was written in that stupid new age poetry style- sorry
If I
Sound like
A
Boomer
If I
Sound like
A
Boomer