Official Review: White Knuckle by Steven Bruce

[Ria710]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "White Knuckle" by Steven Bruce.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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White Knuckle by Steven Bruce is a collection of short poems. There is a total of 51 poems. These poems take us through Steven’s life as he suffered neglect, abuse, and poverty. Each poem could be seen as a memory. Steven didn’t have a loving family growing up. His father abused him, and his mother was a drug addict. We don’t get told much about his siblings, but from what we are told, I understand that Steven was the one that looked out for them.

This is a very powerful and inspiring book that will touch the hearts of a lot of readers. The poems begin from a child’s point of view, but gradually becomes a teenager’s point of view. I like that the poems are from the first-person perspective because it allows me to understand the thoughts and feelings of the author. Every poem is written beautifully, with each one telling its own story.

There is a recurring theme of poverty, loneliness, pain, and neglect. You can feel the author’s pain just by reading the poems. The poems themselves are very short, so it doesn’t take a long time to get through them all. I like that the author made sure that each poem differs from one another. This made me want to keep reading on, and I found that I didn’t find any part of the book boring.

A lot of the poems made me feel very sad, but the poem ‘Sleep’ was the most upsetting. It made me realise that I sometimes take my family for granted, and I don’t realise how lucky I am.

There are a lot of lessons that can be learnt from these poems. For example, it teaches readers that whenever you feel like you’ve hit a dead-end in your life, never give up because hard work and determination can get you out of your problem. In one of the poems, we learn that Steven eventually forgave his mother, despite all the bad things she’d done. This sends the message of how important it is to forgive others.

There was nothing that I disliked. The structure of the poems is amazing, and everything flows smoothly. It is only 92 pages long, so it can be read in one sitting.

Overall, I would rate this book 4 out of 4 stars because it was an incredible collection of poems. I found no mistakes, so it is professionally edited. Due to the sensitive topics in the book, it is not appropriate for young readers. I highly recommend it to young adults who enjoy reading poems.

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White Knuckle
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[RHD]

These poems must have been amazing. I wouldn't mind a good poem or two. Thanks for the review!

[Diana Lowery]

The cover does not make me think of poetry, and it sounds like this collection might be out-of-the-ordinary as well.

[jokinyo]

very detailed review. 51 poems ? sounds fun to read but i will pass for now.

[namuyong]

seems like a long book for me. may look at the poems i like the authors aspect on poetry in the book it can be interesting the review is insightful thanks for the starter.

[Bookworm101520]

This book sounds intense and personal. 51 poems is a lot for one collection! I appreciate the descriptions of the heavy subjects in this book. Thanks for a great review!