I’ll Fly Away – review + quotes

Author: Rudy Francisco
Publication date: December 8, 2020
Genre: poetry
My rating: 5/5 stars

Are you a fan of Amanda Garmon, looking for a poetry collection to fill that lyrical hole in your heart that you didn’t know was there before? Look no further; Rudy Francisco is your guy.

Let’s be real: spoken word is having a MOMENT right now thanks to Garmon’s wonderful performance at the inauguration ceremony last month. I think, therefore, that this is a great time to promote other spoken word poets as well, especially when they’re so stylistically similar. Plus, it’s the start of Black History Month, so it seems only fitting to start off with a review of a book by a phenomenal Black author.

We Were All Someone Else Yesterday – review + quotes

Author: Omar Holmon
Publication date: May 12, 2020
Genre: poetry
My rating: 4/5 stars

In his quick, lively debut collection, poet Omar Holmon delivers a rollercoaster of emotions chronicling everything from the death of a parent to racism to love to the pride in being a nerd. This is a book that will make you laugh, but will also make you think, often in the same poem. It may not be hugely advertised, but this is a solid addition to Button Poetry’s catalog, as well as an excellent testament to the experiences of a Black nerd trying to navigate family and this complicated world we live in.

Swallowtail – review

Author: Brenna Twohy
Publication date: October 1, 2019
Genre: poetry
My rating: 4.5/5

There is no love poem here.

I know
because I looked for it.

from “It Has Been Too Long Since Anyone Has Seen Me Naked”

Surprise, surprise, another collection from Button Poetry that I absolutely adore. As many of you know, I’m a poetry geek, especially about spoken word poetry, and when it comes to spoken word, Button Poetry has some of the best talent out there. Frankly, if there’s a Button book on NetGalley, the odds are pretty high that I’m going to insist on reading it, and Swallowtail certainly did not disappoint. In her debut collection, Brenna Twohy examines topics including abusive relationships, trauma, suicide, femininity, love (or lack thereof), and healing, using metaphors ranging from the traditional (e.g. fruit) to the incredibly contemporary (e.g. Harry Potter). Her language is highly readable–seriously, I finished this entire collection in one sitting, on my lunch break–which makes me think that (a) these pieces would all be fantastic as spoken word/performance pieces, and (b) this collection will appeal to fans of contemporary poetry in general, as well as those who generally don’t like poetry because they find it “too stuffy” or “not relatable.”