Review of Altered Reality: Long Walk To Freedom
Posted: 18 Jul 2022, 07:01
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Altered Reality: Long Walk To Freedom" by Kelonie Utley.]
Humans rightly desire love, affection, and friendship from their loved ones. However, in many cases, such love goes unrequited, leaving wounds and pains in tender hearts. Altered Reality by Kelonie Utley is a compilation of poems that express deep-seated emotions.
This book of 60 pages contains over 30 poems. The poems were written in free verse and rhythmic repetitions give a steady flow to the poems. Although many of the poems have similar themes, each poem is unique in focus and style. The author shares heartfelt emotions without reservations. In the poem titled Asylum, the author employs descriptive words and paints vivid images of her thoughts and feelings. A stanza in the poem reads, "This house isn’t a home Just the death of my dreams Murdered behind the walls Of the punches I endured." In another poem titled Less Than Me, the author describes the hurtful effects of hate. Some of the interesting phrases in this well-structured poem include, "I fall back to Being less than me," "Thy heart falls on hard days," "I die in you," and many others.
I had a great time reading through this book. The poems are touching and relatable. I particularly love the author's use of repetitions which gave structure to the poems. In some instances, rhymes and repetitions occur within stanzas. One of such instances can be found in the poem titled Porcelain Snow where a line reads, "Straying away from broken Broken love, broken promises Growing as a child of blue."
Telling tales through poetry can be challenging. However, in this book, the author skillfully narrated her experiences with poems that convey her emotions and feelings. My favorite poem in the book is I Was Feeling Beautiful. I particularly love how the author combines two different tales in this poem and contrasts the outcome of these two experiences in her life.
On the other hand, I observed that some poems were not rich with creative words. This made them appear flat. This is my only dislike about this book. One of these is the poem titled Better in Me where it reads in part, "Smiles within light Winds of happiness Ignites in me. Journeys of a new Helping me On a path To a better me."
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars due to the dislike stated above. It was professionally edited. Many of the poems were skillfully written with the aid of literary devices. I learned much from the author's resilience in the face of challenges. Poetry lovers will find this book simple and enjoyable.
******
Altered Reality: Long Walk To Freedom
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Humans rightly desire love, affection, and friendship from their loved ones. However, in many cases, such love goes unrequited, leaving wounds and pains in tender hearts. Altered Reality by Kelonie Utley is a compilation of poems that express deep-seated emotions.
This book of 60 pages contains over 30 poems. The poems were written in free verse and rhythmic repetitions give a steady flow to the poems. Although many of the poems have similar themes, each poem is unique in focus and style. The author shares heartfelt emotions without reservations. In the poem titled Asylum, the author employs descriptive words and paints vivid images of her thoughts and feelings. A stanza in the poem reads, "This house isn’t a home Just the death of my dreams Murdered behind the walls Of the punches I endured." In another poem titled Less Than Me, the author describes the hurtful effects of hate. Some of the interesting phrases in this well-structured poem include, "I fall back to Being less than me," "Thy heart falls on hard days," "I die in you," and many others.
I had a great time reading through this book. The poems are touching and relatable. I particularly love the author's use of repetitions which gave structure to the poems. In some instances, rhymes and repetitions occur within stanzas. One of such instances can be found in the poem titled Porcelain Snow where a line reads, "Straying away from broken Broken love, broken promises Growing as a child of blue."
Telling tales through poetry can be challenging. However, in this book, the author skillfully narrated her experiences with poems that convey her emotions and feelings. My favorite poem in the book is I Was Feeling Beautiful. I particularly love how the author combines two different tales in this poem and contrasts the outcome of these two experiences in her life.
On the other hand, I observed that some poems were not rich with creative words. This made them appear flat. This is my only dislike about this book. One of these is the poem titled Better in Me where it reads in part, "Smiles within light Winds of happiness Ignites in me. Journeys of a new Helping me On a path To a better me."
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars due to the dislike stated above. It was professionally edited. Many of the poems were skillfully written with the aid of literary devices. I learned much from the author's resilience in the face of challenges. Poetry lovers will find this book simple and enjoyable.
******
Altered Reality: Long Walk To Freedom
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon