Reviews

Without: Body, Name, Country presents poems and flash creative nonfiction that explore identity, illness, and politics. Broken into two parts, the first section offers poems that explore various personas, while the second presents memoir the author's experience with a harrowing illness in the form of short, evocative flash pieces. Lovely work.

teamoxfordcomma's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced

0.5

Look, I won't sugar coat it: this should not have been published. Perhaps there could be some good stuff in here amongst the rubble, but most of it should have stayed in the drafts to marinade a little longer.

The long and short of it? There were sparse moments of beauty buried under mountains of sentimentality. It read like a diary – the poetic language just wasn't there, and I was left wanting so much more.

I'm lucky: as an English student, I get to drench myself in great literature, poetry, and essays all day long. It's helped me develop a pretty good sniffer. As much as I wish it was not the case, this collection did not pass the sniff test. It honestly read like it could have been written by Gabbie Hanna, Trisha Paytas, or other famous folks who have decided to give poetry a stab.

Absolutely NO shade to the author or anyone who loves this book – we all have our personal tastes/preferences – but this was a flop for me.

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