Review: Houston Skyline, by Carol A. Taylor

About the book, Houston Skyline: Selected Poems Houston Skyline

Houston Skyline by Carol A. Taylor is a collection of poetry inspired by a life filled with change and growth. From her humble beginnings in rural Texas, where her family lived simply, to her career in the high-rises of the business world, and later to her years as a language teacher, Carol’s journey is one of perseverance and self-discovery.

Her poems reflect her experiences, blending memories of her childhood with reflections from her later years. Through themes of family, identity, and place, Carol shares her story in a way that is both personal and relatable.

This collection offers a thoughtful look at how life shapes us, showing how Carol found her voice through poetry and her love for storytelling.

Buy, read, and discuss this book:

Amazon | Goodreads


My Thoughts Melissa

Carol Taylor’s volume of poems, Houston Skyline gives us glimpses into the author’s life in the form of a collection of her poems and short bits of transitional prose. Some of the pieces have been published before, others are new, but every one was a treat to be savored.

At times gentle, wry, poignant, and wistful, this collection is well-crafted without feeling crafty. It’s sometimes very candid (“Hard Times” is a recollection about a damaged toilet seat!) and often tied to the weather, which makes sense, because the weather in Texas changes on a dime and is never without drama.

“You seldom see downpours like that ay more, like the deluge the day they buried old Berry, rain blowing sideways and dark coming down,” she writes in “Funeral in the Rain,” and immediately you can feel it, smell it, taste it.

Taylor’s word-choices are delicious, and her descriptions are cinematic. Because it’s poetry, it’s an easy book to pick up, put down, read through, and then revisit, which is what I did.

If you love poetry, in general, and Texas in particular, you will love this book. If you merely love either one of those things, I feel Houston Skyline will make you love them.

Goes well with: sweet tea, fresh strawberries, and a summer rainstorm.

Spotlight: The Forgotten Worlds, by Nick Courtright

The Forgotten World

 

About the book, The Forgotten World

  • Genre: Poetry / Travel / Fatherhood 
  • Publisher: Gold Wake Press 
  • Date of Publication: August 1, 2021 
  • Number of Pages: 88 Pages 

Cover HI RES Forgotten WorldIn his third collection, poet Nick Courtright explores the world at large in an effort to reconcile selfhood as an American in the international community, while also seeking anchors for remembering a wider world often lost to view in our shared though increasingly isolated experience of reality.

Beginning in Africa with investigations of religion and love, The Forgotten World then moves to Latin America to tackle colonialism and whiteness. From there it travels to Asia to discuss economic stratification and Europe to explore art and mental health, culminating in a stirring homecoming to troubled America, where family, the future, and what matters most rise to the forefront of consideration.

Through all of it, Courtright displays a deft hand, at once pained, at once bright, to discover that although the wider world seems farther away than before, the lessons it offers are more needed than ever.

Comments on this book:

“InThe Forgotten World, Nick Courtright explores the intersections of being a citizen of one country and the desire to live as a citizen of the world…” – Octavio Quintanilla, author ofIf I Go Missingand 2018-2020 Poet Laureate of San Antonio. 

Buy, read, and discuss this book:

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XTRA Praise The Forgotten World


About the author, Nick Courtright

Author Photo Courtright hi resNick Courtright is the author of The Forgotten World (2021), Let There Be Light (2014) and Punchline (2012), and is the Executive Editor of Atmosphere Press. His work has appeared in The Harvard Review, Kenyon Review, and The Southern Review among dozens of others. With a Doctorate in Literature from the University of Texas, Nick lives in Austin with the poet Lisa Mottolo and their children, William and Samuel. Find him online and watching birds on his porch.

Connect with Nick:

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Review: Coffee Traveller, by Fahad Ben G

Coffeetravellerbnr

About the book, Coffee Traveller

 

  • Paperback: 140 pages
  • Publisher: Clink Street Publishing (October 29, 2019)
  • Language: English

Coffee TravellerCoffee Traveller: A collection of musings about travel, life, love, family, relationships, the future and growing up in Saudi Arabia, by the author and poet Fahad Ben G.

Young Saudi Arabian author and poet publishes a collection for Saudi men and women exploring love, memory, break up stages, pain, grief and the human need to express feelings through social media.

When Fahad made the decision to share some of his writing on social media, he was overwhelmed by supportive messages; his gender-neutral writings, borderless stories and poems connected instantly with readers. By sharing his thoughts and unresolved emotions on lost love, the pain of break ups, nostalgia for childhood, and the profound desire to make connections, he saw that he was not alone, and that his work could inspire and comfort other people.

Coffee Traveller brings together a collection of Fahad’s stream of consciousness-style prose and verse, creating vivid images of the past, rich snapshots of home and friendship, tender portraits of love, loss and suffering. Fahad uses journalling prolifically; as a way of recording and memorialising the past, charting feelings, emotions, fears and self-doubt in much the same way an explorer would describe new continents and oceans. Fahad’s travels are internal, spiritual, encompassing the mundane and the profound, looking for connection points and shared experiences.

Buy, read, and discuss this book:

Amazon | Goodreads


About the author, Fahad Ben G

Fahad Ben. G was born and raised in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He has a Masters in Linguistics from Imam Mohammed Bin Saud University in Riyadh. He is certified in protocol & etiquette. He studied acting and received his Diploma in acting from Giles Formen Center, London. Having lived in France and Japan, he settled in London in 2017.

Connect with Fahad:

Instagram


My Thoughts

Melissa A. BartellIn talking about his writing, the author of this lovely collection of poems and thoughts – musings – says, “I write about you not to make you come back; I just need to get rid of the things that used to upset me and I couldn’t tell you about back then.”

Obviously, he isn’t talking about we readers, and yet many of the pieces in this collection – indeed, most of them – express universal thoughts and ideas with delicate, compact phrasing, and word choices that are completely the author’s own. Many of these small texts do, indeed, feel directed at us.

Because this is a book of, essentially, poetry, it’s not the kind of thing you pick up and read straight through. You could do that, but I found it was better experienced in small doses, stretching out the experience over days and weeks. I left it on my coffee table and whenever I had a free moment, I’d pick it up and read a few more pieces, letting them digest.

Fahad’s writing is gender-neutral. He pays little attention to paragraph structure. Many of these read almost like Zen koans. And yet, all of them touch you, connecting to the inherent humanity in all of us.

Coffee Traveller is a delightful surprise, a breath of warm air scented with coffee and spices, and a welcome addition to any collection.

Goes well with espresso and those sesame honey sticks they sell at health food stores.

 

Coffeetravellerbnr

Book Blast: Pieces of Me by Daron Kenneth

PiecesofMe-PUYB

About the Book, Pieces of Me

Pieces of Me

Pieces of Me is Daron Kenneth’s newest offering of poetry that takes the reader on the real, and often surreal, ride through the mindscape of the author’s soul. Pieces of Me is an electric journey into some of life’s richest and most memorable moments.

Buy a Copy from AuthorHouse

Pieces of Me at AuthorHouse

About the author, Daron Kenneth

Daron Kenneth, a teacher, writer, play wright and poet gives us his current collection of poetry and insightful observations about the things that mean the most: life, love, friendships and relationships.


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