To Be Honest

by Nelle Starling

To Be Honest is a collection of poetry that celebrates all of the different feelings and emotions we meet in our lifetime. Inside you will discover the truth about, love, heartbreak, healing, forgiveness, change, grief and happiness. These words were meant to find you.


the truth is,
i don’t talk about it anymore,
but that doesn’t mean it stopped hurting.

Genres: Poetry, Love, Self Help, Nonfiction, Romance, Ebooks

116 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 15, 2023

Reviews

[Jessi ❤️ H. Vojsk [if villain, why hot?] · Rating 4 out of 5]

you deserve a shout it from the
rooftops kind of love.
a slow kind of love.
a dance in the middle of the street under the stars kind of love,
an i will catch you if you fall kind of love.
a shoulder to cry on kind of love.
a flowers just because kind of love.
an if you hurt, i hurt, kind of love.
a dream come true kind of love.
an i'm sorry i was wrong kind of love.

anything less is not worth your time.
anything less does not deserve to hold your heart.

[Rebekka Knoph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Right in the heart:

«You and I were everything each other needed,
but you didn’t know how to see me
while you were still trying to find yourself
(and that's devastatingly okay).

When it's the right person but the wrong lifetime».

Ouch. Big OUCH.

[Norie · Rating 3 out of 5]

“and what a beautiful thing it is, watching you come back to life after you thought you never could” 🤞

[Sofia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love all the poems I read. They're all beautiful and some made me cry. Everything is written beautifully

[Jillian · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐️

Very cliché. Used the same words and phrases too repetitively, but I liked how it was laid out: from being in love, to heartbreak, grief, healing forgiveness, and then finding happiness again.

[Lanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

we love a little sad poetry

[Mimi Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this
I related so much to each poem.
Loved how it was sectioned.
Lovely little read.

[Ruby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Obsessed.

[nayezi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book has beautiful poetic texts that are emotional, empowering and enriching. I could identify well with everything while reading, which - for me - also gave the whole piece a more personal note. I really hope that the author publishes another book, because this is a brilliant debut.

Nonetheless, I do have a small criticism to make, as some of the texts at the beginning were very similar to those in other works: I really wondered whether I had already read the book. However, that subsided towards the end, so that I can now recommend the book with a good conscience.

[Liliya Sholom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Been in a kinda a rut when it comes to reading. This is exactly what I needed. A short book of poems that were absolutely beautiful. Thank you for this 🤍

[Leah Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love heartbreak poetry

[Erika · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some passages were very nice and they spoke to me

[Raghan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Page 39
People come and go
And I don’t think my heart
Will ever be okay
With this
Why does everything have a beginning and an end.

[alina boop · Rating 4 out of 5]

“you can have empathy and boundaries at the same time.”

[Anna (Ink of Books) · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not high art but it brought me to tears and that is much more than I ever expected. Great job.

[bell · Rating 5 out of 5]

poetry book/affirmation type book

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

".... where did we go wrong when everything felt so right? yesterday feels so far away now and i don’t know if i’ll ever be able to wake up tomorrow and not miss you."

[Phil Cunningham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t get over how powerful this poet’s words are. Heartbreakingly beautiful.

[Carly · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐💝

[Anastasiya M · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't feel any connection to this poetry collection.

The majority of the pieces felt too generic and surface-level, and I struggled to find any emotional substance in them. While the flow was done well starting from the beginning and following a journey, there was repetition to be found in abundance. There was a promise of a few topics to be addressed but the main focus seemed to be on heartbreak and that stunted the growth of the collection for me.

To be honest, this was a miss for me.

Read more here: https://sincerelyyoursannie.wordpress...

[Kim reads ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

To Be Honest es una recopilación de poemas que describen distintas etapas de la vida: felicidad, perdón, cambio y más. Cada poema te lleva a través del desarrollo de cada etapa y de cada sentimiento, de manera tan intensa que terminas relacionando cada palabra con experiencias propias.

Hubo momentos en los que tenía que dejar de leer para procesar lo que me evocaba y cómo me hacía sentir. Un poema puede tratar sobre el abandono de un amor para una persona, y sobre la pérdida de un amigo o familiar para otra, pero todos llegan a diferentes rincones del corazón.

Puede que muchos digan que esto no son poemas, que solo son frases bonitas, pero mientras esas palabras logren hacerme sentir algo y remover emociones, para mí es más que suficiente.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

To Be Honest is a collection of poems that describe different stages of life: happiness, forgiveness, change, and more. Each poem takes you through the development of each stage and feeling so deeply that you end up relating every word to your own experiences.

There were moments when I had to stop reading to process what it brought up and how it made me feel. A poem might be about the end of a romantic relationship for one person, and about the loss of a friend or family member for another, but they all touch different parts of the heart.

Some may say these aren’t really poems, just pretty phrases, but as long as the words make me feel something and stir emotions, that is more than enough for me.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt like I was looking through a list of MySpace quotes 😬

[Hayls Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Miss Starling has a way with words; words to mold, heal, and embrace your heart. Whether you are dealing with the loss of a love, or trying to love yourself, Starling’s pure poetry brings you to a place of serenity and understanding just as if she is there in the room telling you directly. Starling has a way of teaching us to forgive ourselves and grow to love ourselves rather than focus primarily on the negative. Her debut poetry book is a strong entrance and I look forward to more of her work.

Favorite poem:

“Love will never leave you hungry and forgiveness will always feed you.”

[Britlyn bordelon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, apparently I already read this and I have no recollection of doing so. That should say enough

[Jess Timmerman · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am only recently broadening my horizons from the 1-2 very specific genres I typically read (or at least have been reading the last 2 years).

Maybe this book is actually really, really good and I just don’t have enough experience in the genre to understand. More than likely, I was looking for a story, and that's not necessarily the flow of poetry collections.

I did not like this collection almost at all. It felt extremely surface level and nearly completely devoid of any emotion.

I read an earlier review where someone said it was like reading MySpace quotes and I couldn’t unseen it. More specifically, it was like those “inspirational” memes that people would share on Facebook or Pinterest in the early 2010s where the text was giant and over some generic photo of an unknown beach or some sort of sparkly background.



OR, or, or, or a collection of quotes from PostSecret. Do you remember PostSecret?!



It just felt comically generic.

However, there were one or two points in the book where I thought maybe this could be 2 stars. Then I screenshotted one of the passages because I really liked it and thought, okay then, maybe 3 stars?

i wish i could stop missing
all of the past versions of people i
used to love

Maybe if I read it like The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan, I would enjoy it more. And then it just went right back to Pinterest quotes. The Lover’s Dictionary told a story of love and loss. It built the relationship up and tore it down and twisted it around to the point that the reader felt they had this deep connection with an unknown, nameless couple.

I didn’t feel her forgiveness or healing or change. I didn’t even really feel her love for this person but more, her obsession with being in love. I felt her loneliness and how she had to cope with a "new normal" but I didn't feel the depth of true love. Just her sadness in all the recent change in her life.

I appreciated the realistic back and forth of feeling better, the feeling you get when you think you’re finally over the “bad part” and then having moments where the heartbreak is so crushing and you feel like you haven’t made any progress at all. I felt that.

Nelle Starling had a few great passages. I feel like if she just took more time to dive into her own emotions and past, she could revamp a lot the passages to be much more thought-provoking.

Maybe I'll bump it up to 2 stars.

If you got this far, please suggest me your favorite poetry collection so I can try again.

[nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

to be honest is one of those books where you’re like, “oh, this is just going to be a cute, feel-good read,” and then suddenly you’re so invested in the lives of the characters, you start checking if they have a fan club. the main character, bridget, is relatable in that ugh, life is hard but also fun way. she’s got some major body image struggles, but honestly, who doesn’t? add in a messy, complicated love triangle, and you’ve got yourself a book that will have you both cringing and cheering at the same time.

bridget's whole journey is about finding herself and figuring out what it means to feel comfortable in her own skin (and with her feelings, because hello, drama). what i loved is that it wasn’t about some “i’m going to lose 20 pounds and my life will be perfect” storyline. instead, it’s more about self-acceptance and realizing that you are the only one who needs to define your worth. it’s like that moment when you realize you’ve been wearing the wrong kind of jeans, and then you find the perfect pair that fits, and you’re like, “yep, life is good again.”

there’s a lot of humor, of course. bridget has this snarky, so over it attitude that had me laughing way too hard. the romantic tension? chef’s kiss. it’s like watching a rom-com, but with more awkward moments and fewer dramatic pauses.

long story short: to be honest is the kind of book that sneaks up on you. it’s not just some fluffy rom-com. it’s about learning to love yourself and your messy, imperfect life and you’ll probably fall in love with bridget’s sarcastic charm along the way. if you’re looking for a cute, funny, and actually meaningful read, this one’s for you.

[kbreads · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a lover of poetry, I was excited to dive into To Be Honest, a highly-rated collection. The book is divided into themes like love, grief, heartbreak, change, healing, forgiveness, and happiness, but I found that only the sections on love and grief resonated with me. The rest fell flat and felt, honestly, underwhelming.

The biggest issue for me was that the poems often seemed to be trying too hard to deliver a point, which ended up detracting from the poetry itself. Rather than reading as raw, emotional verses, much of it came across as overly curated—almost like scrolling through a Pinterest board of inspirational quotes. Perhaps it’s just not geared toward readers who enjoy more layered or lyrical writing; it read more like YA prose, which wasn’t what I expected from such a well-rated collection.

There’s a sense that these might have been ideas jotted down quickly at a bedside table (potential where it should've stayed), but instead of feeling raw and unfiltered, they seemed too simplistic or cliché. I often look for that uncanny feeling in poetry—the sensation of someone pulling the words straight from your mind and heart. This book didn’t quite reach that level of impact. For those who enjoy straightforward or familiar sentiments, To Be Honest may still be a worthwhile read, but for those who prefer poetry that dives deep and speaks with lyrical skill, there are likely other collections out there that will resonate more fully. To be honest, I didn't enjoy it.

[Ares · Rating 1 out of 5]

The formatting choices were not just questionable—they were downright bad. The work felt more like a collection of sentimental stuff scribbled at 3 a.m. during a bad day than a deliberate attempt at poetry. While emotion is undeniably important in art, it cannot completely replace structure, depth, or skill.

The most glaring thing was the lack of cohesion in paragraph and sentence breaks. The writing wasn’t just freeform; it was fragmented to the point of incoherence. Grammar seemed to be an afterthought, and while poetry often bends or breaks rules, this felt less like innovation and more like neglect. Art, particularly poetry, demands skill. Many poets spend years practicing their craft, honing their skills. And then, there’s this.

Then there’s the—slapping a €12 price tag on Instagram poetry and hoping it resonates with people’s sadness. It feels opportunistic rather than sincere. Again, we got a cash grab. And I will call it that when it comes at such a steep price point.

My words are harsh but I’ve seen dozens of books like this, which again, shows that it’s not original.

What Makes Good Poetry?

1. Imagery 🆗
2. Rhythm and Sound ❌
3. Precision ❌
4. Originality ❌
5. Structure and Intent ❌

[Nicole Messina · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was beautiful.

not sure if i loved it so much because it resonated with me and the current situation im going through, but this was written in such a beautiful way. I felt like it somehow put into writing all i have been feeling recently.

i saw a snippet from a page on twitter and immediately decided i had to read this. completely brilliant, found myself reading with tears in my eyes, tears that i didn’t even notice were there, tears because i finally saw put in paper what i had been wanting to express but failed to.

Thank you Nelle for making me realize these feelings are valid. This book will live forever in my heart.


In case you’re wondering, the page that motivated me to look this book up reads as follows:

“i let go because you shouldn't have to work so hard for something that is meant to be.
i always had a fear that life would divide us, but in the end it was us that didn't know how to keep it together.
i guess love isn't enough when everything else shows up, too.

i won't forget when everything felt right
and i will remember the way we were before it all changed.

sometimes i wonder
am i free or am i lonely”

[Alexis Aurelio · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first poetry book I’ve ever read front to back, and it was the healing and comfort I felt I needed through the art of poetry. I’ve always had a heart for poetry but never took the time to read poetry books, just excerpts. This one caught my eye when scrolling through Tik Tok; more and more excerpts kept popping up that I decided to order the book.

I finished it all in one sitting, since it isn’t a heavy read, and I plan on going back, highlighting and writing letters on each page with thoughts and words that came to my head as I read it the first time. Although this is my first poetry book, I think this one may be setting itself top of the list in this genre. I hope to encounter more of this heartfelt/positive structure than sad/depressing poetry which I know is popular.