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Between the Tides: Ebbs of poetry from a stream of thought
This collection from J.D. Estrada is his second published book and his first volume of poetry to show that inspiration can come from life, loss, illness, love, a block of cheese or whatever.
- GenresPoetry
60 pages, Paperback
First published May 10, 2014
1 person is currently reading
14 people want to read
About the author
J.D. Estrada
24 books177 followersAfter years of working in advertising, I figured there were better ways to write fiction. Born on August 13th, I share birthdays with Alfred Hitchcock and Fidel Castro... an interesting coincidence since mom is Cuban and I love a good story.
Truth be told, ever since I was a kid I dreamt about being an inventor, I just didn't know I'd end up doing it using words. Where some people choose to invent new products, I’ve chosen to invent worlds through words.
In college, I studied psychology for 3 years before realizing that if I finished, I'd need a psychologist for myself. Not being too enticed by the whole full circle nature of that trajectory, I switched to Marketing, Advertising... and Psychology. Seems I just couldn't let it go.
A lover of Science Fiction and Fantasy, I’ve always loved writing and connecting with people. Mind you, although I love these genres, my reading tastes are as eclectic as my musical passions. So from rock to salsa to classical music, I also read and write in a variety of genres and am just as satisfied writing a review or a poem as I am working on my next novel. My obsession with the human aspect of who we are is deeply embedded in most of my work and my first book is no exception. Only Human is the first link within the Human Cycle, a three-book exploration of humanity through fiction.
I’m currently working on several projects, consistently put out free material on the blog (jdestradawriter.blogspot.com) and I rant with zest on Twitter via @jdestradawriter. I also have and instagram account (@jdestradawriter) if you want to see what I’m getting up to or what delicious beer I may recommend pairing with the book your reading.
My favorite band is Pearl Jam, I was born in Puerto Rico, I bodyboard and to me, playing a guitar is as therapeutic as a bleeding into a notebook with my pen. So by all means, visit, say hi and connect.
Peace, love and maki rolls.
JD
Truth be told, ever since I was a kid I dreamt about being an inventor, I just didn't know I'd end up doing it using words. Where some people choose to invent new products, I’ve chosen to invent worlds through words.
In college, I studied psychology for 3 years before realizing that if I finished, I'd need a psychologist for myself. Not being too enticed by the whole full circle nature of that trajectory, I switched to Marketing, Advertising... and Psychology. Seems I just couldn't let it go.
A lover of Science Fiction and Fantasy, I’ve always loved writing and connecting with people. Mind you, although I love these genres, my reading tastes are as eclectic as my musical passions. So from rock to salsa to classical music, I also read and write in a variety of genres and am just as satisfied writing a review or a poem as I am working on my next novel. My obsession with the human aspect of who we are is deeply embedded in most of my work and my first book is no exception. Only Human is the first link within the Human Cycle, a three-book exploration of humanity through fiction.
I’m currently working on several projects, consistently put out free material on the blog (jdestradawriter.blogspot.com) and I rant with zest on Twitter via @jdestradawriter. I also have and instagram account (@jdestradawriter) if you want to see what I’m getting up to or what delicious beer I may recommend pairing with the book your reading.
My favorite band is Pearl Jam, I was born in Puerto Rico, I bodyboard and to me, playing a guitar is as therapeutic as a bleeding into a notebook with my pen. So by all means, visit, say hi and connect.
Peace, love and maki rolls.
JD
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 30, 2015
With poets, love is eternal. They possess a sense of all senses. There’s a hurtful clarity, souls become nurtured, and memories become sharpened. A poet’s heart whispers to them. J.D. Estrada’s collection inside Between the Tides does all of that.
His poems throughout sing a certain song, a song that we all perhaps have endured in some way. A music that is blissful and filled with many challenging thoughts and reminders.
J.D. is a powerful and evocative writer and definitely worth a read!
His poems throughout sing a certain song, a song that we all perhaps have endured in some way. A music that is blissful and filled with many challenging thoughts and reminders.
J.D. is a powerful and evocative writer and definitely worth a read!
January 28, 2018
I have a confession to make: I’m not the most ardent fan of poetry. The ones I love, I love a lot: The Ambush by Brian Patten, Delayed Reactions by Sheenagh Pugh, anything by John Hegley. But as for the rest, if I had to pick my poison, it’s prose over poetry any day.
But now I happily have another exception to the rule, thanks to this sublime poetry collection by JD Estrada. The emotion of JD’s poetry hits you like waves - one moment you’re chilled and relaxed, the next you’re tense and afraid - the fact that the visceral BRANDED follows on from the gently melancholic CLOUDS APART is proof of the surprising gear switching throughout.
As a whole, the collection is a smorgasbord of human emotion. Individually, some of the poems themselves transcend the waters in which they are netted. For one, NEWS is so relatable to our world today, even though it was written in 2014 - the killer opening line ‘can I come home with good news for once?’ leads us in to a pre-emptive epitaph of the last two years’ worth of horrors. JD elegantly describes himself as a ‘joy scavenger fiddling among the scraps/ a lost wanderer in search of a different map’. SINGLE STONE picks up this thread, every stanza shuddering with this same strand of -weariness.
Many of the works are as melancholic as they are melodic. RAYS speaks of a yearning - for love, for home, for the past? That much is left ambiguous, but the line ‘solitary solitaire’ shines like the sun rays of which speaks. Meanwhile, CHALLENGE resonates with religious crises, directed towards a god who is conspicuous in his absence. ‘A halo’s just a crescent from the past’ is one of the loveliest lines I’ve ever had the fortune to read.
JD has a real skill in weaving worlds from his words - in RIPPLES, he evokes the word of the title within little everyday acts in our lives: ‘a smile today is a thank you tomorrow/ a misplaced can end in sorrow’. In proffering sage wisdom in such a mischievous and timeless way, this poem feels almost more like an ancient rhyme, or a magic spell from a fairytale. The mythological theme continues with THE SEA, powerfully spoken from Poseidon’s POV, its lines and words and verses lapping and ebbing like the tides it describes, the motif ‘I am the sea and the sea is me’ anchoring each stanza with resonant heft.
However, there are times when the metaphors or images used don’t ring true with me personally, as in LEMON, BLOOD and GONE. Even in such cases, JD still manages to hook you in with a single killer line, like ‘contemplate and compensate’. Not every poem is a winner, but even then the passion for the craft of writing shines through every piece.
And then there’s the industrial horror of HIGH RISE, conveyed in an insidiously Spartan manner, which beautifully realises a world we both recognise and dread. ‘I can see clearly I cannot see’ is complexly and cunningly crafted, as is the chilling coda where smoke rises into the heavens like a soul. Fears of the industrial have now morphed into fears of the technological which JD effectively explains in PHONE-Y, bemoaning the fact that ‘I miss when a phone was just a phone.’ In PADLOCK, he somehow renders the mundane action of unlocking a door as a poignant and exciting experience.
RING is an intriguing treaty on the potential infinity of the ring as both a symbol and a solemn vow. The writing is mesmerising and yet the poem itself is frustratingly short despite discussing eternity - perhaps a mischievous, meta punchline to the very concept. One of the most complete poems, from my experience, is FREEDOM, which sends the beautiful message that freedom ‘is the sun, it is the sky’, encapsulating an abstract concept into an image with characteristic ease. ‘Freedom is a waltz or a wave or a song... freedom’s never finding something wrong’.
JD is a self-proclaimed inventor of words, rightfully so - but I’d go a step further. To me, JD is a true craftsman, and his poems can have the tangibility & emotional impact of a classical sculpture. For a prose hipster like myself, it was both refreshing and rewarding to be reminded of the power and potential of poetry.
But now I happily have another exception to the rule, thanks to this sublime poetry collection by JD Estrada. The emotion of JD’s poetry hits you like waves - one moment you’re chilled and relaxed, the next you’re tense and afraid - the fact that the visceral BRANDED follows on from the gently melancholic CLOUDS APART is proof of the surprising gear switching throughout.
As a whole, the collection is a smorgasbord of human emotion. Individually, some of the poems themselves transcend the waters in which they are netted. For one, NEWS is so relatable to our world today, even though it was written in 2014 - the killer opening line ‘can I come home with good news for once?’ leads us in to a pre-emptive epitaph of the last two years’ worth of horrors. JD elegantly describes himself as a ‘joy scavenger fiddling among the scraps/ a lost wanderer in search of a different map’. SINGLE STONE picks up this thread, every stanza shuddering with this same strand of -weariness.
Many of the works are as melancholic as they are melodic. RAYS speaks of a yearning - for love, for home, for the past? That much is left ambiguous, but the line ‘solitary solitaire’ shines like the sun rays of which speaks. Meanwhile, CHALLENGE resonates with religious crises, directed towards a god who is conspicuous in his absence. ‘A halo’s just a crescent from the past’ is one of the loveliest lines I’ve ever had the fortune to read.
JD has a real skill in weaving worlds from his words - in RIPPLES, he evokes the word of the title within little everyday acts in our lives: ‘a smile today is a thank you tomorrow/ a misplaced can end in sorrow’. In proffering sage wisdom in such a mischievous and timeless way, this poem feels almost more like an ancient rhyme, or a magic spell from a fairytale. The mythological theme continues with THE SEA, powerfully spoken from Poseidon’s POV, its lines and words and verses lapping and ebbing like the tides it describes, the motif ‘I am the sea and the sea is me’ anchoring each stanza with resonant heft.
However, there are times when the metaphors or images used don’t ring true with me personally, as in LEMON, BLOOD and GONE. Even in such cases, JD still manages to hook you in with a single killer line, like ‘contemplate and compensate’. Not every poem is a winner, but even then the passion for the craft of writing shines through every piece.
And then there’s the industrial horror of HIGH RISE, conveyed in an insidiously Spartan manner, which beautifully realises a world we both recognise and dread. ‘I can see clearly I cannot see’ is complexly and cunningly crafted, as is the chilling coda where smoke rises into the heavens like a soul. Fears of the industrial have now morphed into fears of the technological which JD effectively explains in PHONE-Y, bemoaning the fact that ‘I miss when a phone was just a phone.’ In PADLOCK, he somehow renders the mundane action of unlocking a door as a poignant and exciting experience.
RING is an intriguing treaty on the potential infinity of the ring as both a symbol and a solemn vow. The writing is mesmerising and yet the poem itself is frustratingly short despite discussing eternity - perhaps a mischievous, meta punchline to the very concept. One of the most complete poems, from my experience, is FREEDOM, which sends the beautiful message that freedom ‘is the sun, it is the sky’, encapsulating an abstract concept into an image with characteristic ease. ‘Freedom is a waltz or a wave or a song... freedom’s never finding something wrong’.
JD is a self-proclaimed inventor of words, rightfully so - but I’d go a step further. To me, JD is a true craftsman, and his poems can have the tangibility & emotional impact of a classical sculpture. For a prose hipster like myself, it was both refreshing and rewarding to be reminded of the power and potential of poetry.
February 15, 2018
Review
Poetry can be intricate
Like an allegory or a haiku.
It can be informal,
Like a free verse about something you knew.
JD is a master
Of painting a picture with words.
His skill is a gift
He gives to the world.
Between the Tides,
Lists but a few
Of the wonderful works
We are all lucky to view.
Thank you, dear friend,
For sharing your soul
Through poetry and stories
Uniting us all.
Poetry can be intricate
Like an allegory or a haiku.
It can be informal,
Like a free verse about something you knew.
JD is a master
Of painting a picture with words.
His skill is a gift
He gives to the world.
Between the Tides,
Lists but a few
Of the wonderful works
We are all lucky to view.
Thank you, dear friend,
For sharing your soul
Through poetry and stories
Uniting us all.
January 17, 2018
The first thing that catches your eye in any book is title and cover- here we have a simple yet charming cover sending vibes of summer Zen, and a title that proves to mean much more than it might seem, as through reading this book you travel not only between the tides of actual sea, but also the tides of our lives, emotions and feelings. This book makes you think and inspires you directly and subtly, showing a glimpse of the world author sees. It even inspired me to write a few poems as well, discovering my own thoughts and attitude to the subjects discussed; as a mix of various tides this book flows quite nicely and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Among my favorite poems are: Control, Cinnamon, Sometimes smile, Baring, Eyes, The sea, Freedom, Jane Genie.
I would recommend this collection to those who want a thought-provoking read in a poetry form and you also can find here occasional hauntingly beautiful and mesmerizing images and lines. No matter how many poems you’ll like or dislike - I can guarantee that this book will definitely leave you with wanting more from the author and consciously & unconsciously thinking of the topics discussed. It’s a fast read but the pleasant aftertaste will linger for many days if not for more.
I would recommend this collection to those who want a thought-provoking read in a poetry form and you also can find here occasional hauntingly beautiful and mesmerizing images and lines. No matter how many poems you’ll like or dislike - I can guarantee that this book will definitely leave you with wanting more from the author and consciously & unconsciously thinking of the topics discussed. It’s a fast read but the pleasant aftertaste will linger for many days if not for more.
January 22, 2018
This is the second collection of poetry I've read by J.D. As before, this left me pondering life and inspired me to pick up the pen myself and write.
The writing style flows along a rhythm. The words seem to fall off the tip of my tongue, making me flow along the tides coming to shore (see what I did there?). This collection to me is mainly about struggles we face daily. There's the struggle of freedom, of overcoming, of putting words on paper, of not being able to sleep. As stated in "The Sea" (page 46-47), "I am the sea For that is all I can be." This line embodies the entirety of the collection. We all flow along life, similar to the sea. We face good times and bad times and times we cannot define. Each moment is different and brings something new to discover.
A few favorite lines of mine:
"Clouds tumble, weakly drunk and stoned,
The day fades and ponders,
And the instant, never ending, is now gone." (page 29).
I loved the imagery in this line.
"Contemplate and compensate
All that you procrastinate.
Faults and whims become your sin,
Another / excuse / again."
This line made me smile because it's true, and we all know it. Who doesn't love excuses?
There's also a poem about coffee, and since coffee's my favorite, so is that poem.
I recommend this collection to those who enjoy poetry. It's a fun read that will leave you in deep thought.
The writing style flows along a rhythm. The words seem to fall off the tip of my tongue, making me flow along the tides coming to shore (see what I did there?). This collection to me is mainly about struggles we face daily. There's the struggle of freedom, of overcoming, of putting words on paper, of not being able to sleep. As stated in "The Sea" (page 46-47), "I am the sea For that is all I can be." This line embodies the entirety of the collection. We all flow along life, similar to the sea. We face good times and bad times and times we cannot define. Each moment is different and brings something new to discover.
A few favorite lines of mine:
"Clouds tumble, weakly drunk and stoned,
The day fades and ponders,
And the instant, never ending, is now gone." (page 29).
I loved the imagery in this line.
"Contemplate and compensate
All that you procrastinate.
Faults and whims become your sin,
Another / excuse / again."
This line made me smile because it's true, and we all know it. Who doesn't love excuses?
There's also a poem about coffee, and since coffee's my favorite, so is that poem.
I recommend this collection to those who enjoy poetry. It's a fun read that will leave you in deep thought.
November 15, 2017
The rythm, the feels and the flow of these poems is beautiful.
A lot of the things are also very recognizable feels.
Love it ❤
A lot of the things are also very recognizable feels.
Love it ❤
December 20, 2017
Have you ever read a book of poems that made you think better about people? This book will soothe the soul and restore your faith in humans.
Read
November 14, 2017((to come))
January 4, 2021
What a perfect way to begin the year! I’m in love with poetry and I definitely got lost Between the Tides. I marked 12 poems but my absolute favorite from this collection was Stumble; the ending was marvelous!
July 24, 2017
Estrada's poetry collections are always a joy to read. Clever word play is written with rhythm that easily changes from steady and slow to a frantic pace. It is hard to pick just one phrase that stands out, as there are so many Aha! moments.
I'll be reading his other works.
I'll be reading his other works.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews