Early Works: A Collection of Poetry

by Dylan Geick

Dylan Steven Geick is an 18 year old from Chicago committed to both athletics and the arts in equal measure. He's set to wrestle and study creative writing at Columbia University in New York. These poems are a look into his early experiences with love and loss, an introspective coming of age tale told in verse.

Genres: Poetry

36 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2017

Reviews

[Abril · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book by chance, in the midst of loneliness and sadness. But such is the thing with chances, sometimes they lead you to something magical.
This book had an impact on my life in a way I know I will only be able to fully grasp years later. I have always loved writing but it was this book that made me unabashedly fall in love with it. Poetry was an art form I only half-loved. Mostly because it intimidated me but partly because I hadn't been exposed to it or allowed myself to be immersed in it. This book changed that. I found myself unable to breathe while reading "Dearth." I was struck by both the writing but also the heartbreak, the pain, and the gravity of the words that sat in front of me. I cried during "Calcified" and related far too heavily to the detachment in the poem, the way a person learns to go cold over time.
Every poem made me feel, which I learned, is one of the most important things a poem can do. This book is full of amazing, good quality poetry and I’m excited to see what more the author has in store, whether it’s in the form of another poetry book or of a novel.

[Crissy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tbh, I began reading the collection without high expectations simply because I knew it was his first book and he was so young, but those two factors are so far removed from his writing, I was blown away. The imagery and depth of Dearth; the playfulness of Michigan Avenue; the emotion of Stars and Smoke and I could go on, but I encourage you to read this wonderful collection of poetry. The book does exactly what you’d expect from a good poetry book - it elicits emotion and contemplation. I was thoroughly impressed and cannot wait for Mr. Geick’s next book release.

[Taz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some were cute, and some I didn't understand, but such is poetry (in my experience at least).

[Leslie Pharose · Rating 5 out of 5]

English is not my mother tongue, and I used to read only in French, last summer I took a step forward by buying this book. without any lies, I did struggle to understand it, maybe because that's what poetry is about, I want to believe that in each one of the poèms, people can find a piece of themselves in a certain way, that book is about that.
Today that book is always by my side, it's an inspiration of what we can do, if we start to believe in ourselves.
It's just the begining of what the writer is going to accomplish.

[Marcus Passero · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book means a lot to me. Thank you Dylan. You taught me a lot from this book.

[Linda Oneth Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes it is difficult for people "to get" poetry and sometimes you are forced to study the rhyme and reason of the words and then it can become more of an equation than a pleasure. Early Works is written in such a way that I sat down, read it, absorbed it, related to it and enjoyed every minute I spent with it. By letting us see into parts of his soul, Dylan has made me feel comfortable in being on a first name basis with him. He has related to the "everyday man/woman" by writing from his heart; so unpretentious, so melancholy, so raw, and at times, so hopeful. At times I felt like he was pulling memories from my soul. I believe you could call Dylan a true wordsmith as his relationship with words and feelings may cause your emotions to rise to the surface and bring back feelings you thought had been forgotten. Stars and Smoke made my heart beat erratically with melancholy and hope for what could be again.

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wrote a longer review elsewhere but want to add a few thoughts here, since Dylan asked us to do so. I rarely rate anything 5 stars out of 5 but this being his first effort and knowing the love, work and yes, craft that he poured into this collection I didn’t hesitate to give 5 stars. He earned it with these early poems. The imagery is deep. The uniqueness of each work is commendable (i.e. no two are the same structure). And the conveyed emotions are strong. You feel sad at some, you smile at others, you get hard with at least one. If these are an indication of what’s to come, I’ll be very happy for Dylan Geick. This little book could be a collector’s item some day. But it takes discipline to churn out more such work, and I hope the distractions and pure joy of college life don’t spoil him for the task. Something tells me, though, that an all-state wrestler doesn’t have to be reminded about discipline. Keep living life as adventurously as you have, and you’ll always have material to work with. Good luck, Dylan. We really do love you for who you are.

[Tevin Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have, over the last 3 years, found a new passion for reading and I have always loved school and could relate to most subject areas from chemistry to international relations, but the one area that always seemed to bore me was poetry. I absolutely hated poetry until I read this book. I bought and read the book because I am a social media fan of Dylan Geick, but I re-read the book because it spoke to me. I believe the book will speak to everyone who reads it. Mulitple poems were relevant to my life and I think everyone can find something in this book for them.

[Zurry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This young author is very promising, his poems are original, deep, make you reflect, move, dream and make you want to read other things written by Dylan Geick.
Which I hope will happen soon.
I would like to read a book of short stories written by Dylan and I would even read one of his novel in the future!!
So Dylan keeps writing and soon publishes another book I can not wait to read it.

[penmay · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like Ocean Vuong or Li- Young Lee then you will love Dylan Geick. Authentic, moving and thought provoking. Has stayed with me and some of it continues to live rent free in my head! Worth every penny/cent/euro/etc! Love it.

[Rachael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a huge stan of Jackson and Dylan so of course I wasn’t going to miss the opportunity to read Dylan’s book. I have never been more impressed, Dylan goes to an Ivy League college and is a wrestler and still manages to find time to write. This work of poetry is definitely something worth reading and coming from a 19 year old this is impressive. Look out for Dylan’s new novel that he is in the process of writing it should be good. One of my favorite poem from Early Works would have to be Cookies because it really reminds me of when I was a young kid and when I went over to my grandmas. I hope to see Dylan go far and improve his writing as he gets older.

[Sara Price · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love dylan with all of my heart and reading his poetry really gave me a better insight into his life i feel like it gave me a better perspective of him as a person but also made me feel closer to him in a way. some of his poems were personal but others where just simple and him. my favorite has to be noct just because of the way he describes his love for jackson idk it was personal and it was cute. if you are reading this review just know im proud of you

- sara price from Sarnia ,Ontario Canada

[Angelica Monrreal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit, this author is pretty young and to have published a poetry book is impressive. Each poem, I could tell was personal and came from the heart. I like how he included a picture for almost every poem to help with the vibe of his poetry. I didn't like how the book was pretty short, but it is his first so I'll cut him some slack.

[Paige Abendroth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very thoughtful, it made me appreciate the small things and is quite inspiring. For sure one of the best books I've ever read.

[Shari H · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Poems are really well written and thought provoking. A must have for your library.

[Brechje · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book came in today and I read it and will reread it many many times, because these poems are so powerful and beautiful. Just wow.

[Candice Engel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard to believe this was written by a teenager! So deep and thoughtful. Orion was particularly impressive.

[Esh Hope · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful.

[Conner Tighe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Dylan Geick and his work.

[Nicky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just got this book yesterday and read it... Loved it, Dylan Geick is very talented and I can’t wait to see more of his work.