Review of Here it is MICHELLE…you’re here too!
-
Emmanuella C Arumeze
- Book of the Month Participant
- Posts: 302
- Joined: 13 Dec 2021, 22:31
- Currently Reading:
- Bookshelf Size: 100
- Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-darlington-onuoha.html
- Latest Review: Imperfect Lives Perfect Grace by Dr. E.M. Johnson
Review of Here it is MICHELLE…you’re here too!
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Here it is MICHELLE…you’re here too!" by Michelle Dickinson.]
Here it is Michelle...You're Here Too! is a collection of poems written by Michelle Dickinson. The book consists of twelve poems that follow a central theme of self-reflection. The book also features works of art that resonate with the individual theme of some of the poems. The poems in this book tackle a range of different issues, from personal feelings of unworthiness, loneliness, and self-doubt, to more contemporary social norms like drugs and toxic relationships, even discussing existential concepts like finding meaning in life and death.
The book includes poems like "The War Inside," where Michelle questions reality with respect to social constructs like religion or relationships while expressing feelings of loneliness. In the poem "Nothing," the reader is left to wonder whether the deepest feeling of all is emptiness and how this feeling can be escaped. Perhaps my favorite line from the book displayed the self-harm one could experience in a toxic relationship by stating, “how easy it is to become numb, you can love someone with all you have and still find a way to feel nothing at all.”
The book has a lot of positive aspects. The author uses a wide array of poetic devices in her poems. For example, "The Fallen" featured a lot of imagery, metaphor, and analogy. Poems like "Candy Ma'am?" show a bit of clever wordplay while maintaining the seriousness required to address a delicate issue like drug use. Michelle also does an amazing job changing the rhyme scheme of each poem, sometimes in between stanzas. The poems were arranged nicely, such that their themes ran into each other, and the entire body of work felt connected. The book forces its reader to think hard about the issues it explores, particularly about how these issues relate to the reader.
In doing so, Michelle ensures that the book is very reader-oriented. I must also appreciate the honesty and vulnerability that were put on display by the author. I commend the use of simple vocabulary throughout the entirety of the book.
However, the book does have some negative aspects. The poem "47 Paces" proved to be a bit too abstract, forcing the reader to think hard to understand the poem. I was also confused with certain details, like who the woman that scorns the author was? Is it herself? Or someone else? I found a few errors in this book. It was professionally edited.
For the negative reasons above, I would deduct a star from my rating. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. Although this book had its negative side, it did not take away so much from my satisfaction in the book; as a result, I cannot rate it any lower than this. I recommend this book to lovers of introspective poetry. People who love good poetry would enjoy this book.
******
Here it is MICHELLE…you’re here too!
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Here it is Michelle...You're Here Too! is a collection of poems written by Michelle Dickinson. The book consists of twelve poems that follow a central theme of self-reflection. The book also features works of art that resonate with the individual theme of some of the poems. The poems in this book tackle a range of different issues, from personal feelings of unworthiness, loneliness, and self-doubt, to more contemporary social norms like drugs and toxic relationships, even discussing existential concepts like finding meaning in life and death.
The book includes poems like "The War Inside," where Michelle questions reality with respect to social constructs like religion or relationships while expressing feelings of loneliness. In the poem "Nothing," the reader is left to wonder whether the deepest feeling of all is emptiness and how this feeling can be escaped. Perhaps my favorite line from the book displayed the self-harm one could experience in a toxic relationship by stating, “how easy it is to become numb, you can love someone with all you have and still find a way to feel nothing at all.”
The book has a lot of positive aspects. The author uses a wide array of poetic devices in her poems. For example, "The Fallen" featured a lot of imagery, metaphor, and analogy. Poems like "Candy Ma'am?" show a bit of clever wordplay while maintaining the seriousness required to address a delicate issue like drug use. Michelle also does an amazing job changing the rhyme scheme of each poem, sometimes in between stanzas. The poems were arranged nicely, such that their themes ran into each other, and the entire body of work felt connected. The book forces its reader to think hard about the issues it explores, particularly about how these issues relate to the reader.
In doing so, Michelle ensures that the book is very reader-oriented. I must also appreciate the honesty and vulnerability that were put on display by the author. I commend the use of simple vocabulary throughout the entirety of the book.
However, the book does have some negative aspects. The poem "47 Paces" proved to be a bit too abstract, forcing the reader to think hard to understand the poem. I was also confused with certain details, like who the woman that scorns the author was? Is it herself? Or someone else? I found a few errors in this book. It was professionally edited.
For the negative reasons above, I would deduct a star from my rating. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. Although this book had its negative side, it did not take away so much from my satisfaction in the book; as a result, I cannot rate it any lower than this. I recommend this book to lovers of introspective poetry. People who love good poetry would enjoy this book.
******
Here it is MICHELLE…you’re here too!
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Imperfect Lives Perfect Grace by Dr. E.M. Johnson
