Instinct to Ruin

by L. Mathis

The second full-length collection of poetry by Lora Mathis.

Genres: Poetry

78 pages, Paperback

Published February 23, 2017

Reviews

[julie | eggmama · Rating 5 out of 5]

honestly the only "instagram poet" i accept. their writing is so raw, so wrenching. i found them when i was having a hard time (i think sophomore year of high school which was one of the most depressed years of my life), and i always find myself returning to this collection. it's comforting, in its own way, and i have specific memories attached to some of them, like Call Me Any Time Of Night, which is really the only way you can articulate a response to a friend who tells you they almost killed themselves. And Stars of Nothing, which feels just like the bites of happiness of driving too fast in cars with friends and the windows down and the night whipping through our fingers.

i just reread this book which is why i'm remembering all this now lol

Some of my favorites:
- The Poems Haunt Not the People
- Stars Of Nothing
- Lac Guidon
- Call Me Any Time Of Night
- Now I Know

[Amy Layton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like a lot of the poetry books are the same nowadays, but Mathis' truly did get to the heart of it all.  They pose many questions that I've found I've posed myself: how do you continue to live with a brain that makes you not only want to run away, but to burn everything down, too?  How do you maintain friendships when it's easy to drop them?  And why are we all so obsessed with our bodies?

For me though, these questions aren't anything new, and I've read so many other poetry books filled with the plight of mental illness and anguish at how we live. Though I'm certain Mathis' poems will reach many people in a way it didn't reach me, I can still easily say that their writing is well done, raw, and honest, which is just what poetry and its readers need.

Review cross-listed here!

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lora Mathis is a gifted poet and their words fuel my soul. They write of mental illness and gender and abuse in ways that take you through all of their intense feelings. Amazing.

[Frynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

raw and in your face, much like L Mathis Instagram account, if you don't follow them, just go do it. fighting depression with raw vulnerability.

[Evelina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book touched me in places that I thought were long dead. I shed tears with almost every poem. They all touched me deeply and personally. Every word.

[Alivia Vanin · Rating 4 out of 5]

this took me 200 years to get through only for lack of trying

[Madi]

Oh, to be 17 again

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

brutal

[annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lora is an incredible story teller. They create this amazing world within their poetry and you get sucked in so quickly because it’s so familiar. Highly recommend.

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book speaks to me in so many levels that I can't barely explain it with words. Navigating this world as a mentally ill femme is hard and L puts a great part of this pain into their poetry, which makes this work a brutal piece of honesty. I saw myself on nearly every poem of this book and it felt like my heart was being brutalized, but I kept going even when I was so shocked that all l I could think of was my own pain.

This book has helped me realize that I'm not alone. Never was. And isn't it why we read after all?

[Lina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a terrific book of poetry, quick and to the point. L writes about mental illness, abuse, about feeling neglected in such a visceral and touching way. Some poems were soft, some were hard, all were gutting. There were a few poems that didn't reach the level as the others did, but they were very few and far between. Highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys contemporary poetry. You will either relate to the poet, or get a genuine glimpse inside how others like yourself live and what they go through. I can't wait to read it again.