G. Bianco, 2019
 For anyone who is unaware of who Tyler Knott Gregson is, he is a poet, photographer, and writer best known for his Typewriter Series of poetry. His first work, Chasers of the Light, was a compilation of his Typewriter Series and it became a national bestseller. His most recent release, Miracle in the Mundane: Poems, Prompts, and Inspiration to Unlock Your Creativity and Unfiltered Joy, builds upon what fans love about the poet while offering a chance to see through the eyes of Gregson. The best way to describe Gregson’s book is poetry mixed with life lessons and challenges. Falling slightly into the self-help category, Greyson mixes his beautiful typewritten poems with challenges for the reader to better improve themselves and the world. This collection aims to inspire readers to unleash their creativity in new and exciting ways and make people see the beauty in the simple things, or the miracles in the mundane. Overall, this book is inspiring and the prompts and challenges Gregson gives seem to be fun and exciting. What makes Gregson’s book unique is that he gives levels of difficulty for his challenges. That is to say, he offers a challenge that pairs up with a philosophy of his and also gives the reader the opportunity to go “beyond” the original challenge. With his challenges, Greyson also prefaces each chapter with a typewritten poem and cleverly written titles. He also includes a few photographs of nature taken himself that bring a sense of tranquility through their simplistic beauty. While this book is not like any of his others, fans of Gregson’s typewriter poetry will still get their fill of beautifully written poems. However, this is not just a book of poetry, so if that is what the expectation is, be aware. Gregson’s collection is a great read for both those wanting to dip their toes in the waters of poetry, as well as self-help books. The flow and layout of the book itself makes it feel like a quick and effortless read, while sill working and exercising the mind of the reader through self-reflection. Even if poetry is not the most popular genre of literature in this modern day and age, Gregson’s collections are definitely worth taking a look at! 
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 With so many rave reviews over the years, Rupi Kaur’s milk and honey has always piqued my interest. I’ll be honest: I’m not the most prolific in poetry, besides the classic Renaissance and transcendentalist poetry you're forced to read in school. However, in an attempt to become more well-versed in modern poetry, I thought I’d try reading Kaur’s poetry collection. After finally picking it up, I can understand why most people are so in love with Kaur’s work. Kaur’s poetry collection follows a main theme of survival. By touching on topics, like abuse, love, sorrow, loss, and femininity, the collection meshes together into a homage to the bittersweet moments in life and turning them into a positive for oneself. This poetry collection is definitely not your classic Emily Dickinson, but I won’t say that’s necessarily a bad thing. Kaur honestly and bluntly weaves together narratives through her poetry and prose to display a lifetime of struggle and learning. The metaphor of the sweetness of milk and honey is brought up almost immediately in the first few poems, while effectively being carried through the rest of the poems. By separating the collection into four sections/chapters, the story Kaur tells flows very nicely with each chapter picking up where the other left off. The reader really gets a glimpse at what Kaur has been through in her life through the simplest of poems. The imagery she expresses is phenomenal, especially through the use of single line poetry. The lengthier poems and prose also make the reader stop and think with their metaphors and punctuation usage. I will admit that some portions were a little too blunt for my liking and certain topics made me a bit uncomfortable. Also, while some of the illustrations were simplistically pretty, some of them were a bit cruder than I would’ve preferred. It may be that I’m just unfamiliar with her style and was not expecting it, which is why it came as such a shock to me, but it still wasn't my favorite. That being said, the simplicity of certain images were really imaginative and stunning. Overall, this was a good read and I plan on picking up her second collection, but I just don’t think I was as moved by certain pieces as some other people were. However, I will give Kaur an A+ for bravery in writing such raw pieces. The way she mixes her illustrations, personal stories, and writing style into the one poetry collection makes it the perfect book for those who are looking for a modern and thought-provoking read.  |
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February 2023
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