The writing was so different and yet so gorgeous. Although- I suppose it is technically poetry, but this is where the conflict comes in. It is classified as poetry, but I saw it more like just writing in verse, because that’s what I’m used to and this would be quite informal for poetry. However, it was still quite interesting, and I feel like the writing being all lowercase added to the… Ambiance, I suppose? I'm a little torn about how to review this, in the end, because I really wanted to like it more than I did. I liked the message. I felt it was realistic, even if that also meant it wasn't as unique a perspective as I might have enjoyed. As I've already said, I liked certain individual poems a lot, and will probably revisit them. However, there were others that felt too simplistic to me, perhaps because my tastes run to the more esoteric imagery some poets use, and overall, I didn't particularly feel like the collection said anything *new* or innovative.

That said, some poems were a little too clichéd for my liking; but I suppose in this kind of work, which has been dubbed “tumblr-esque”, you have to expect that. I mostly found this to be the case with the poems that dealt with love and romance, but not at all in those that dealt with complicated family relations. These are the passages that really hit you in the gut and bring you into Amanda Lovelace’s world. As for the idea of healing / saving yourself... well, I'm torn between thinking I managed that, in my own way, and thinking I haven't got nearly as far as Lovelace in that process because mine looked so different. But that's not really a book review, that's a journal entry.) Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” The way the themes are approached is brilliant. Lovelace has taken so many deep, and often times depressing, issues and given them light without romanticizing them. She gives women who are, or were, in situations she has experienced in the past empowerment to endure their hardships. Even though I couldn’t relate to quite a few poems’ set-ups, the energy and positive vibes Lovelace was sending had a big positive toll on me. I am so happy to have gotten to know about such a kind individual and see such positivity be translated onto paper.After I read Milk & Honey by Rupi Kaur earlier this year I was craving something similar to read and found it with The Princess Saves Herself in this One. The covers are similar, the writing style is similar, and the themes in the books are similar. This book is filled poems about love, feminism, healing, and more. you" is directed towards the reader, and full of advice on what it means to be a human, and also a woman I get you clothes sometimes, so it would be perfectly reasonable if I got some from you too. Again, any guy who braves any type of dreadful clothing store deserves an award too. The first section, the princess, details Lovelace’s childhood. There are poems about her love for reading, her loneliness and weight problems, and her cold mother.

What’s interesting is that Shraya articulates the position of minorities but also explores the difficulties of speaking openly about racism when you have white privilege.I saw my own relationships with my dragons -- boys who loved me, but not enough or well enough, and girl friends who did not understand the friend part of that word the way I thought I did, or we did. I loved the discovery of self. Confused and faltering, fledging and demanding. The whole of love for the self, claimed slowly, and always with the ghosts of yesterday's which never leave entirely. It’s the beginnings of a journey of self-discovery but at times it does read like a personal diary that was written more for Cox’s benefit than anyone else’s. There’s no moment of clarity or development and she doesn’t offer readers a way forward or a light at the end of the tunnel, but instead a nod of solidarity. Read this to know that you are not alone in your young struggles. The Princess Saves Herself in This One has four sections, each showing the princess's progression in agreement with an overlying theme. [2] The Princess [ edit ] I recommend The Princess Saves Herself in this One to fans of Milk & Honey and to anyone who loves poetry that is easy to read and connect with.

There is some controversy concerning the fact that many people believe that the poems inside The Princess Saves Herself in this One are not really poems, merely words written by pressing enter after each one. I cannot completely agree, nor I agree. I think what is more important than the fact that the author Amanda Lovelace does not have the same genius in writing poetry as William Shakespeare, Francesco Petrarca Petrarch or Robert Frost, is the strong message she sends through her poems. The writing perhaps was not mind-blowing, but my heart felt every word. Each section describes her growing up and the evolution of her feelings towards the people in her life, especially her mother and her first love, a man she calls the Dragon.

1. Wonderballs

I’m going to take another moment here to say I’m not a poet or a proper poetry critic, so please take this with a grain of salt. However, I’m not a big fan of the italic note at the end of every poem. This is a firm style choice by Lovelace, but sometimes I don’t find them necessary. I caught myself skipping over them while reading. Most of the poems stand fine on their own without the italic note, so they bothered me more than intrigued me. the princess saves herself in this one is the most similar to milk and honey as it draws on her work in terms of style, content and even cover art. It’s even published by the same people! Something to note though is thatthe target audience of this book seems to be considerably younger than that of Rupi Kaur, which does change the tone. This collection took the world by storm when it was published in November 2014 and modern poetry collections are now popping up left, right and centre in the wake of her success. It’s not just “pressing enter after a couple of words”, it’s deliberate breaks, white space, and word choice. There wasn’t really a plot, and although there are some characters, there is a ton of feeling and not necessarily a lot of explaining. So it was a book of poetry, not a story, even though it was written like one. Confused? Me too.