Review of Matters and Memory

[Ngozi Onyibor]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Matters and Memory" by Mark Stephen John Shirley.]

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3 out of 5 stars

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Matters and Memory is a poetry collection by Mark S. J. Shirley. Mark's poems explore the subjects of matters and memory. It delves into topics such as the passing of time, birth, death, thought, change, and alienation.

The collection is expansive, but the ones that resonated best with me are "X 2005" and "Uncertain Beginnings."
"X 2005," the shortest and last poem, is an excellent choice to close the book with, as it talks about the passing of time.

"Uncertain Beginnings" talks about the fear and uncertainty that comes with change as you trade the familiar for the unfamiliar. But in the end, it is worth it because only then can a new you emerge.

One of the book's most appealing features is the brevity of the poems. This allows the reader to easily recall the lines of each piece and reflect upon their meaning before moving on to other poems.

On the other hand, I found the poems challenging to understand on the first read. The poet's writing style is somewhat obscure and calls for deep analysis to comprehend, which can be challenging for readers who are new to poetry.

However, after leaving the book for a while and giving myself time to forget the poems, I noticed that I grasped the meaning better upon reading them a second time. The book does call for patience or a little distance at times.

Although I understand that the concept of poetic license gives poets leeway to eschew conventional grammar and punctuation rules, I still wish the collection's editing and organization/formatting were more traditional. Many of the poems have lines that bleed into each other. Also, the absence of periods and commas in some poems made it difficult to tell where one line ends and the other begins.

Overall, I rate the book 3 out of 5 stars. The punctuation and formatting issues affected my reading experience and ultimately affected my enjoyment of the book. In addition, some poems were obscure and challenging to comprehend. Despite these issues, I still think the book is worth reading if the reader is willing to take the time to decode each poem's meaning.

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Matters and Memory
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[Lisa P Cowling]

I most times do not appreciate poetry so I may not be reading this book. However, the brevity of some poems in the book may enable easier reflections to appreciate the poems better. You wrote a wonderful review.