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Little Girl Blues: Existence of an Image
These poems question the conjectures of the societal and familial constitution. Therefore, the main themes of this book center around identity, self-discovery, and existence.
- GenresPoetry
64 pages, Paperback
Published September 12, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 23, 2017
Reading this book made me feel a lot of different emotions. The author/poet expresses herself well.
November 15, 2017
I absolutely loved this poetry collection. It was eloquent and emotional. I felt a surge of emotions when I went from one poem to the next. This poetry collection took me on a journey to self discovery and selfhood.
March 24, 2018
In “Little Girl Blues”, a daring and bold coming-of-age teenage poetry anthology, McGhee’s words are deep and profound as she expands on a variety of difficult and current life-topics such as entering puberty, bullying, rejection, self-denigration, loneliness, and despair. The author digs deep as her words come spilling out like an angel’s breath, offering heartfelt messages of hope, inspiration, tolerance, and encouragement.
Although typographical errors and formatting issues plague this collection, these poems each have a far deeper meaning than simply their assigned text. This prose may elicit deep-seated feelings of loneliness, pain, anger, regret, but it also stirs the heart and soul, providing a guiding light to anyone willing to hear the true message.
Although typographical errors and formatting issues plague this collection, these poems each have a far deeper meaning than simply their assigned text. This prose may elicit deep-seated feelings of loneliness, pain, anger, regret, but it also stirs the heart and soul, providing a guiding light to anyone willing to hear the true message.
December 11, 2017
It has been a long time since I've read a book of poetry. There is such a stigma attached to reading poems, (that you must be an intellectual, or an artsy type of person, etc.) but if non-poetry readers read this book, they would be drawn into the world of poetry much like I was after finishing Little Girl Blues. I took my time reading this very real book. Every day I would read one poem, savoring the lines, then thinking about it much like I do when I read a chapter from the Bible. If a person really wants to enjoy a poem, read it out loud where the cadence or assonance really comes through. One night my husband came into the den wanting to know who I was talking to. That was comical.
I like the unpretentious tone, yet thought provoking lines -- "My feelings were real and profound despite the authenticity of yours. Your hand is visible yet intangible to touch." Together the poems weave a story and take you back to younger years. I wonder what a teenager or any young adult would think reading this book. I have a feeling it would be a great book to give high school or college students. My guess is that they would really identify with all the poems. The author has managed to create a book of poetry that any person could relate to, whether a sophisticated or non-sophisticated reader. You don't need to be a book snob to get into this book. I purchased another copy to give to my godchild, a senior in high school. It will be interesting to see what she thinks.
I like the unpretentious tone, yet thought provoking lines -- "My feelings were real and profound despite the authenticity of yours. Your hand is visible yet intangible to touch." Together the poems weave a story and take you back to younger years. I wonder what a teenager or any young adult would think reading this book. I have a feeling it would be a great book to give high school or college students. My guess is that they would really identify with all the poems. The author has managed to create a book of poetry that any person could relate to, whether a sophisticated or non-sophisticated reader. You don't need to be a book snob to get into this book. I purchased another copy to give to my godchild, a senior in high school. It will be interesting to see what she thinks.
May 3, 2018
Magnificently heartfelt
The collection of poetry was a remarkable collection that brought the life of a young girl into focus. I enjoyed this collection, and each poem told its own story. It brought out emotions and thoughts, and just memories. It was well written, and written from the heart and experiences. A highly recommended read, even if you aren't sure if you like poetry.
The collection of poetry was a remarkable collection that brought the life of a young girl into focus. I enjoyed this collection, and each poem told its own story. It brought out emotions and thoughts, and just memories. It was well written, and written from the heart and experiences. A highly recommended read, even if you aren't sure if you like poetry.
December 29, 2017
Beautiful book, and great poems. Author J.N. is a wonderful person who went out of her way also. Thanks! Love it & the card!
October 10, 2017
I loved this book. It sucker punches you in the heart. My favorite poem is "Broken" because I can relate to it. Her words are refreshing and real. She doesn't hold back and she's real. I highly recommend this book.
October 15, 2019
Editing needed.
These poems are filled with ideas and emotions that readers can relate to: uncertainty, fear, grief, loss, and a yearning to find meaning in life. The tone is overwhelmingly bleak, as though the writer is mourning the loss of hope as much as anything else.
These expressions of emotional pain can be beneficial because, as humans, we tend to appreciate knowing we are not the only person to have experienced such things.
However, the poetry in this collection is somewhat contrived, especially in certain rhyming schemes, where it seems words have been chosen simply because they rhyme, without regard to how they diminish the meaning of what the poet is trying to say. There are also some significant grammatical issues in the writing, which suggests to me that the author has not had their work edited or even proof-read before publishing. While it is true that poetry “can be anything”, it is important to make sure that what is written does make sense to the reader so that the intended meanings can be delivered.
There is some really good imagery and some highly emotive and evocative writing in these poems, so it is a very great shame that the expression of such powerful and important ideas as those explored in this book has not been refined and polished so that the writing truly achieves what the writer wants it to.
As an avid reader of poetry, I closed this book feeling disappointed that the author did not seek to fulfill their potential by ensuring that their writing is as good as it could possibly be. The moments of brilliance were not enough to outweigh my disappointment in the finished quality of the writing.
If a reader is seeking empathy and is willing to disregard poor grammar, this book may well satisfy them far more than it did me.
These poems are filled with ideas and emotions that readers can relate to: uncertainty, fear, grief, loss, and a yearning to find meaning in life. The tone is overwhelmingly bleak, as though the writer is mourning the loss of hope as much as anything else.
These expressions of emotional pain can be beneficial because, as humans, we tend to appreciate knowing we are not the only person to have experienced such things.
However, the poetry in this collection is somewhat contrived, especially in certain rhyming schemes, where it seems words have been chosen simply because they rhyme, without regard to how they diminish the meaning of what the poet is trying to say. There are also some significant grammatical issues in the writing, which suggests to me that the author has not had their work edited or even proof-read before publishing. While it is true that poetry “can be anything”, it is important to make sure that what is written does make sense to the reader so that the intended meanings can be delivered.
There is some really good imagery and some highly emotive and evocative writing in these poems, so it is a very great shame that the expression of such powerful and important ideas as those explored in this book has not been refined and polished so that the writing truly achieves what the writer wants it to.
As an avid reader of poetry, I closed this book feeling disappointed that the author did not seek to fulfill their potential by ensuring that their writing is as good as it could possibly be. The moments of brilliance were not enough to outweigh my disappointment in the finished quality of the writing.
If a reader is seeking empathy and is willing to disregard poor grammar, this book may well satisfy them far more than it did me.
January 29, 2020
The poetry found in Little Girl Blues is heartfelt and filled with longing for what seems far from reach. The passages delve into the raw emotions of a little girl grasping for hope in a world that seems to offer very little. McGhee uses pain and suffering to tell stories that some may find dark. However, others having similar experiences may find connection. McGhee is a storyteller who has clearly used her writing to release that which was intended to inflict pain or punishment. There is a brokenness in her poetry that reveals this; it reads as being therapeutic for the author in its apparent ability to bring about release. In editorial review, McGhee’s writing style invokes empathy. However, there are typography issues that need to be corrected in order to affect a quality piece. Nevertheless, Little Girl Blues is moving as it lends itself to spoken-word which may be powerful in and of itself with proper delivery. To that end, the written book could be just as powerful with proper formatting and edits. The overall rating for Little Girl Blues is 3.5.
November 17, 2017
A book of poetry. The most difficult and most underrated form of art involving words.
Truth be told, and to paraphrase William Faulkner, all writers are failed poets. They aim to create the kind of beauty to be found in a poem.
This short book is an example of what a few neatly placed words can done, what can be achieved within the confines of letters and punctuation marks.
To use only words to create beauty, to evoke certain feelings, to make you feel something, that's the closest thing to magic we still have.
Of course, this is the work of a young poet, which means that it is both ambitious and not without fault. Maybe those faults derive from ambition: there's clumsiness in some parts, some metaphors seems forced or artificial or not at all that inspired.
Regardless, most of the poems are really good, some even better.
Overall, a pleasant and fast reading experience.
Truth be told, and to paraphrase William Faulkner, all writers are failed poets. They aim to create the kind of beauty to be found in a poem.
This short book is an example of what a few neatly placed words can done, what can be achieved within the confines of letters and punctuation marks.
To use only words to create beauty, to evoke certain feelings, to make you feel something, that's the closest thing to magic we still have.
Of course, this is the work of a young poet, which means that it is both ambitious and not without fault. Maybe those faults derive from ambition: there's clumsiness in some parts, some metaphors seems forced or artificial or not at all that inspired.
Regardless, most of the poems are really good, some even better.
Overall, a pleasant and fast reading experience.
December 30, 2018
Deleted the review because of controversy. 2 stars - it's okay and bearable.
March 12, 2018
Deep, dark and personal.
To be honest I prefer to be uplifted by poetry, but that being said these were often brutally honest, straight from the heart and poignant. I believe there to be a strong catharsis for the poet and that itself is something beautiful to see.
To be honest I prefer to be uplifted by poetry, but that being said these were often brutally honest, straight from the heart and poignant. I believe there to be a strong catharsis for the poet and that itself is something beautiful to see.
December 18, 2017
To begin with, I really liked the cover as it aptly signifies what the book is all about. All of the poems are truly heartfelt and they beautifully express the different emotions and experiences the little girl feels as she crosses the journey from childhood to adulthood. The best part of the book was its simplicity. The poems are written in such a way that even a non-poetry reader can enjoy them.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews