A review by readingoverbreathing
The Collected Works of Phillis Wheatley by Phillis Wheatley

3.0

"To yon bright regions let your faith ascend,
Prepare to join your dearest infant friend
In pleasures without measure, without end."

I remembered briefly learning about Phillis Wheatley in school, before I ever truly understood what it meant for her to gain such fame and acclaim as a Black woman in her lifetime. So when I spotted this in my local used bookshop, I thought it a prime opportunity to dive into her work as an adult.

I really wanted to love this, and I wish I could say I did, but the repetitive topics of her poems, mostly eulogies, really lost my interest over time. I did not find her style to be particularly groundbreaking, apparently a common complaint which is addressed in some of the supplementary material, but she does write with a clear passion which I found compelling in some instances.

I'd like to go back to some of this armed with more scholarly context and perhaps with more of a scholarly mindset, but for now, I think I'll have to stick with three stars.