Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems by Billy Collins

Release Date: October 22, 2013
Publisher: Random House

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

Synopsis:
After a twelve year hiatus, Billy Collins is back with a large collection of poetry covering a wide variety of topics. Aimless Love includes more than fifty new poems among a generous selection from his early poetry collections - Horoscopes for the Dead, Ballistics, The Trouble with Poetry and Nine Horses.

A two-time Poet Laureate of the United States, Billy Collins uses his poetry to explore the every day things that we so often take for granted.  He explores the infinite landscapes of love, the various types of love, betrayal, confusion, eating alone within a Chinese restaurant and so much more.

Review:
In fairness and honesty, I haven't read as much poetry as I would have liked. When I saw a Goodreads giveaway for a large collection, I entered without a second thought. I was delighted to win a free copy. Before winning this book, I wasn't familiar with much of the author's work. Aimless Love was a great introduction to his previous volumes of poetry and his latest works.

The wide variety of poetry encompassed quite a lot of subjects. There were the usual suspects - love, nature, emotions, and special occasions. Yet, there were some out of the ordinary subjects as well. The author found inspiration in common items (houses, a sculpture, a lunch in a Chinese restaurant) and explored the different ways a person could conceive of the item as in his poems "The Lanyard" and "Envoy."

"Endless Love" and "Obituaries" were among those that I felt deeper in my spirit than I anticipated. And yet "Writing in the Afterlife", "Adage", and "Ode to a Desk Lamp" made me both smile and feel sadness at different points throughout the poems. I loved how I was able to see through his point of view and feel some of the emotions coursing through his veins at the time of his writing. The collection of poetry was seamless, timeless really, and easily read from cover to cover.

Overall, I enjoyed the entire collection. I even committed the sin of dog-earing pages to mark the various poems which grabbed me for various reasons. His work also inspired me to begin writing my own poetry, something I had given up years ago when writing was difficult. If you're looking for an all-encompassing volume of poetry, this is the book for you. I truly recommend this book for any poetry lover out there.

Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems by Billy Collins is currently available at many retailers. It can be purchased in various formats including hardcover, paperback, Kindle and audio-book. Clicking the link below will take you to the book's Amazon page.
Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems by Billy Collins

What's Left Behind - Poetry Collection by Michal Mahgerefteh

Release Date: October 1, 2013 (First published March 2012)
Publisher: Poetica Publishing Company

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

Synopsis:
In an attempt to come to terms with the passing of her mother, Michal Mahgerefteh pours her heart and soul into the poetry which makes up What's Left Behind. As her grieving process continued, the depth of her pain is felt within each of the lines. The poems also reflect the level of devotion and love that both the author and her father felt as the dark days overtook them. Touching upon a subject that many can relate to, Michal Mahgerefteh allows the reader into the emotional, spiritual and sometimes physical journey that she and her family underwent.

Review:
I won this collection of poems from a free giveaway at Goodreads.com and grew somewhat anxious waiting for it to arrive. The subject matter of the book hits fairly close to home for me. Whereas the author lost her mother while witnessing her father's struggle, my family went through a similar situation with the passing of my brother. So in a way, I was excited to read these poems and at the same time, I was dreading it.

There is an intense level of raw emotion within the lines of each poem. Though they vary in length, the power is still apparent to the reader. With honesty and real emotion, the author allows us, the readers, a glimpse into her grieving process without a thought to whether we find it messy or painful. It's an interesting blend of honoring her mother's memory and dealing with the stray threads of life that remain for her father and the author herself.

I was quite taken with a few of the poems. They mirrored the emotions that I felt when watching my brother slip from this world into the next. In Things She Left Behind, the words paint the images vividly and without closing my eyes, I could picture the items that my parents packed to take home. Each item symbolizing something precious and sacred in an everyday kind of way to my brother as the items in the poem were to the author's mother. My heart grew heavy as I read By Her Resting Place. Everything I felt at my brother's graveside was summed up in these few lines.

This collection of poems has the ability to reach into the reader and touch their soul with the longing and love carried by their words. Since nearly everyone experiences the loss of a loved one at some point in their lives, they will be able to feel the author's words, not just read them. I truly loved these poems. They say the things that we sometimes cannot. If you're looking for a deeply meaningful and loving collection, I would buy this in a heartbeat.

What's Left Behind - Poetry Collection by Michal Mahgerefteh is currently available in Kindle form at Amazon.com. It is soon to be released in paperback as well. You can purchase the e-book from the following link.
What's Left Behind - Poetry Collection by Michal Mahgerefteh