What do you think?
Rate this book
I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip
Anthem-like poems about relationships, mental health, loss, and recovery from the activist and bestselling author of Stuff I’ve Been Feeling Lately.The reader’s experience with this unique collection is lifted from the page as Alicia Cook has collaborated with a number of up and coming musicians to transform some of her poetry into song. Like her debut book, this one is divided into two parts. Modeled after a vinyl record this time, the collection is separated into the EP record, holding Cook’s shorter poetry, and the LP record, holding Cook’s longer poetry, prose, and songwriting. Together, they form an inspiring collection for all those recovering from something.“Through each internal rhyme and turn of phrase, she presents new ways of interpreting despair, courage and overcoming. The poems are mostly devoid of gender pronouns, favoring the first and second person to promote accessibility for all. Cook is self-reliant and fully aware of how to make her voice heard.” —Asbury Park Press “This book was raw . . . Alicia Cook writes about very important topics, some of them really hard to read about, especially if they hit too close to home . . . You will always find a poem, a sentence, something that will speak to you, to your heart, to what you’re going through and this book did just that for me.” —Chapter Ninety-Two“A heartfelt, emotional, beautiful book of poems.” —The Pages In-Between
162 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 5, 2018
30 people are currently reading
2563 people want to read
About the author
Alicia Cook
11 books463 followersAlicia Cook is a multi-award-winning writer and poet based in Newark, New Jersey. Her writing often focuses on addiction, mental health, and grief – sometimes all at once. She is the curly-haired human behind the poetry books Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately, I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip, Sorry I Haven't Texted You Back, and The Music Was Just Getting Good. Her work has been adapted into music and dance, and has been published in a number of anthologies, as well as in The New York Times, The Asbury Park Press, and Writer’s Digest. Her most recent poetry award is the 2026 Central Avenue Poetry Prize for her poem "The Squirrel Made His Way."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 123 reviews
April 2, 2018
I highlighted so many quotes and entire poems that spoke to me in this book. I’m already looking forward to rereading this one.
Full review to come closer to the publication date.
Full review to come closer to the publication date.
August 8, 2022
"Tragedy leaks into the buckets of our bodies.
We don’t realize we’re cracked until
we’ve flooded and the pressure releases,
pouring out in tears from our eyes and
screams from our throats and
anger from our clenched fists and
prayers from our bended knees.
It is those same unassuming cracks
where grace enters to replenish us through
the light from our eyes and
the songs from our voices and
the humanity from our outstretched arms and
the new chapters from our forward-marching feet."
This is the second Alicia Cook anthology I have read and I found it as deeply moving and beautifully penned as the first. The poems were split into two sections - the EP and the LP - with the first being poems I had grown to expect and the second with longer poems or prose excerpts. I appreciated both, equally.
"Sunlight creeps in with blackness.
Days of dust and shattered glass
have contorted the face
I once could see
in the frames on my dresser.
At the foot of the mattress,
my broken heart holds mass.
When God and I touch base,
He tells me
you’re just settlin’ for lesser.
I’ll miss you longer
than you ever would’ve stayed.
That’s what writers do,
how we make it through
being betrayed."
We don’t realize we’re cracked until
we’ve flooded and the pressure releases,
pouring out in tears from our eyes and
screams from our throats and
anger from our clenched fists and
prayers from our bended knees.
It is those same unassuming cracks
where grace enters to replenish us through
the light from our eyes and
the songs from our voices and
the humanity from our outstretched arms and
the new chapters from our forward-marching feet."
This is the second Alicia Cook anthology I have read and I found it as deeply moving and beautifully penned as the first. The poems were split into two sections - the EP and the LP - with the first being poems I had grown to expect and the second with longer poems or prose excerpts. I appreciated both, equally.
"Sunlight creeps in with blackness.
Days of dust and shattered glass
have contorted the face
I once could see
in the frames on my dresser.
At the foot of the mattress,
my broken heart holds mass.
When God and I touch base,
He tells me
you’re just settlin’ for lesser.
I’ll miss you longer
than you ever would’ve stayed.
That’s what writers do,
how we make it through
being betrayed."
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 26, 2018
one of the most powerful modern poetry books I've read in a while. there were three different times I was almost moved to tears (and that usually NEVER happens to me while reading). Alicia is a force to be reckoned with and this book absolutely shows that. I can't wait to see what she does next!!!
May 15, 2024
"Everyone is recovering from something. This is for all of us." - Dedication in I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip.
July 20, 2018
Around the Year in 52 Books: 43. A book with a title that is a whole sentence.
3.5 stars
First, let's get the math done for how I finally decided on the rating:
EP portion: 2.5 stars + LP portion: 4 stars = 3.25 stars, round up to 3.5 stars.
This was a predicted 5 star read because I absolutely loved Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately but the first half of the book was just not my cup of tea. The writing was average and at points, trite beyond imagination. The only redeeming point as with any of Cook's work was the inclusion of personal anecdotes which ensured that I read forwards. I barely had any favourite pieces but the ones I did love were because of their simplicity and profound relatablity rather than the writing so if someone is looking for masterfully crafted poetry or traditional poetry, the first section of the book, in my opinion, is bound to dissapoint.
Then came the second section of this book: The LP, and I so wish that we could've gotten more, similar to what it contained then the EP portion; it was wayyy better. The only problem I had with that section was some poems shared the same theme and were successive, so when read, it really felt like you were reading the same thing with different words, lost my interest then and with a lot of love related pieces. What I perhaps like the most in this collection was Cook's brilliance when it came to creating a certain atmosphere/scenario in the reader's mind, she did it so effortlessly and made it feel like you were sharing the same head space as hers, experiencing her memories like they were yours.
Overall, this collection is personal; you know when writers say I write for myself, Cook's collection actually brings those words to life because it includes personal tragedies, heartbreaks, death, harm and love. If you can connect to it and feel emotions riling up then the collection I believe, has achieved its aim. If not, then this isn't for you because the writer wrote this for herself as much as she wrote it for the readers. At least that's what I felt like whilst reading.
I complain when I read modern poetry about how it's not poetry and Cook's work is no different but her simple words and writing are so profound that I can't help but realize that maybe poetry has no form, it really does depend on our interpretation of the words and lines that etch themselves on our hearts and adamantly refuse to leave. That is why I think I'll always look forward to more of Cook's work!
Favourites:
The EP:
Collateral Beauty, I am Marked, Saturday-Morning Cartoons, Riviera Maya, Amalfi Coast, Absent, I Am Sorry For Your Loss, Hard of Hearing.
The LP:
Sailing On, Leaf-Strewn Sidewalks, This Isn't About The Number Six, Four Minutes In May, Hindsight and Pictures, Gloves On Radiators, Ten Little Girls, It's About Power, The Process of Apoptosis, Ready, Set..., Footprints.
Special shoutout to all the poetry pieces/songs in the collection, they were an added treat!
3.5 stars
First, let's get the math done for how I finally decided on the rating:
EP portion: 2.5 stars + LP portion: 4 stars = 3.25 stars, round up to 3.5 stars.
This was a predicted 5 star read because I absolutely loved Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately but the first half of the book was just not my cup of tea. The writing was average and at points, trite beyond imagination. The only redeeming point as with any of Cook's work was the inclusion of personal anecdotes which ensured that I read forwards. I barely had any favourite pieces but the ones I did love were because of their simplicity and profound relatablity rather than the writing so if someone is looking for masterfully crafted poetry or traditional poetry, the first section of the book, in my opinion, is bound to dissapoint.
Then came the second section of this book: The LP, and I so wish that we could've gotten more, similar to what it contained then the EP portion; it was wayyy better. The only problem I had with that section was some poems shared the same theme and were successive, so when read, it really felt like you were reading the same thing with different words, lost my interest then and with a lot of love related pieces. What I perhaps like the most in this collection was Cook's brilliance when it came to creating a certain atmosphere/scenario in the reader's mind, she did it so effortlessly and made it feel like you were sharing the same head space as hers, experiencing her memories like they were yours.
Overall, this collection is personal; you know when writers say I write for myself, Cook's collection actually brings those words to life because it includes personal tragedies, heartbreaks, death, harm and love. If you can connect to it and feel emotions riling up then the collection I believe, has achieved its aim. If not, then this isn't for you because the writer wrote this for herself as much as she wrote it for the readers. At least that's what I felt like whilst reading.
I complain when I read modern poetry about how it's not poetry and Cook's work is no different but her simple words and writing are so profound that I can't help but realize that maybe poetry has no form, it really does depend on our interpretation of the words and lines that etch themselves on our hearts and adamantly refuse to leave. That is why I think I'll always look forward to more of Cook's work!
Favourites:
The EP:
Collateral Beauty, I am Marked, Saturday-Morning Cartoons, Riviera Maya, Amalfi Coast, Absent, I Am Sorry For Your Loss, Hard of Hearing.
The LP:
Sailing On, Leaf-Strewn Sidewalks, This Isn't About The Number Six, Four Minutes In May, Hindsight and Pictures, Gloves On Radiators, Ten Little Girls, It's About Power, The Process of Apoptosis, Ready, Set..., Footprints.
Special shoutout to all the poetry pieces/songs in the collection, they were an added treat!
February 28, 2018
Alicia's mixtape was pure brilliance, from the cover, to the concept, to the content, but the record is next level. Cook doesn't just write books. She takes you on a lyrical journey. And this time, she gives you the melodies.
With the mixtape she gave you a suggested playlist, and with this release, she gives you the music. The songs that have been shared so far have all made me cry. Hindsight and Pictures featuring Chris Andrews is something I play on repeat until my heart can't take it anymore.
This book is something you want to not only read, but absorb. Through the words, through the songs, through everything Cook has to offer and serve you. I highly suggest listening to the songs prior to reading the book. "Hindsight and Pictures" and "Too" are probably my favorites. But if you know, have known, or have lost someone struggling with addiction, the song "Hope" will haunt you in a hopeful way, as it did me.
However, the words alone will render you speechless and gutted.
"A testament to remembering where you came from, but understanding you do not have to stay there."
"Tell me how to heal - I didn't hear you the first time."
2,000 forecasts was a personal one for me. I heard her read this aloud and it broke me. As a fellow Jersey native, I lived through this hurricane. I too lived through a lost love that left me shattered.
"Does it hurt to melt?"
Yes, it does. But why does it feel good?
I felt a profound appreciation for the "...But the North Ward is the North Ward". Anyone who is familiar Newark will relate to this.
The author plays with rhyme and meter in this book and explores new depths, perhaps taking you places you tried to hide from and bury. But the one thing she will give you above all else is hope. And that's a gorgeous, gorgeous thing. She will show you that even through tragedy, you can survive. Hell, one day, you will even smile.
I highly recommend this book, even if you are not typically a fan of poetry.
With the mixtape she gave you a suggested playlist, and with this release, she gives you the music. The songs that have been shared so far have all made me cry. Hindsight and Pictures featuring Chris Andrews is something I play on repeat until my heart can't take it anymore.
This book is something you want to not only read, but absorb. Through the words, through the songs, through everything Cook has to offer and serve you. I highly suggest listening to the songs prior to reading the book. "Hindsight and Pictures" and "Too" are probably my favorites. But if you know, have known, or have lost someone struggling with addiction, the song "Hope" will haunt you in a hopeful way, as it did me.
However, the words alone will render you speechless and gutted.
"A testament to remembering where you came from, but understanding you do not have to stay there."
"Tell me how to heal - I didn't hear you the first time."
2,000 forecasts was a personal one for me. I heard her read this aloud and it broke me. As a fellow Jersey native, I lived through this hurricane. I too lived through a lost love that left me shattered.
"Does it hurt to melt?"
Yes, it does. But why does it feel good?
I felt a profound appreciation for the "...But the North Ward is the North Ward". Anyone who is familiar Newark will relate to this.
The author plays with rhyme and meter in this book and explores new depths, perhaps taking you places you tried to hide from and bury. But the one thing she will give you above all else is hope. And that's a gorgeous, gorgeous thing. She will show you that even through tragedy, you can survive. Hell, one day, you will even smile.
I highly recommend this book, even if you are not typically a fan of poetry.
March 5, 2018
Alicia Cook's creativity never ceases to amaze me. She first shook up poetry in Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately, by coordinating music with each piece. With I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip, she shakes it up once again. Alicia is taking poetry to new levels with every book release, setting the bar higher and higher for every writer out there.
"Machines and humans share similar sounds.
They break the same, too."
The writing in this book is dripping with raw emotion, strength and delicacy all at the same time. I was able to attach to every single feeling, experiencing the emotion in every word written. In one piece I'd feel haunted and breathless, in another--complete rejuvenation and hope. The next I'd be smiling with nostalgia, turn the page and reach for the tissues. Alicia Cook does not stick to a certain script, she just writes. I believe this is what makes her poetry so wonderfully relatable.
"There's a magic to be found in days that begin quite
ordinary if you just open yourself up to possibilities."
We come to learn Alicia's new talents in this book: song writing, and boy does she kill it. She was born to write and to make people feel, it's obvious but can we talk about the vocals too? Holy talent stuffed into a single book! Alicia has started from choosing songs to pair with pieces--to now--writing her own and collaborating with artists to make them come alive. It's genius and pivotal for Cook's art. To say the least--I'm on the edge of my seat waiting for what is next from Alicia Cook.
If you think you might like this book-I can promise you, your expectations will be surpassed. Make sure to get your hands on I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip JUNE 5 and come gush about Alicia's natural talents with me.
June 5, 2018
Alicia Cook is a genius. She marches to the beat of her own drum and the world is better for it. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip bucks the expectations of modern poetry with incomparable grace. Do yourself a favor and buy this book. Read it. Love it. Share it. You'll be glad you did.
February 13, 2018
I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Alicia Cook is back, with her best work to date. I love seeing writers grow. I love seeing writers give readers an honest glimpse into their lives. This is not one-size-fits-all poetry. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip is a diary, a time capsule. Reading this collection helped me to know the author better. That's very important to me when it comes to poetry. Am I Doing This Right? was by far, my favorite piece. I would have to quote the entire piece to show what I connected to.
Here are some lines from other pieces I loved.
"You lose someone and their ghost splatters
everywhere. Black as squid ink in the fibers of your
clothes. In the ringlets of your unwashed hair. In the
last glass from which they drank. In the passenger
seat of your car."
"You need to stop internalizing other people’s pain, my mother tells me on the phone. It’s not healthy. She is right; I have done this all of my life. Like an overused sponge, I soak up all the sadness around me, feel it as if it were my own, and expect it not to seep into my own life."
"While they pair his dominant with my recessive genes, all I could think of is his indecisiveness with my selfishness. His neat freak tendencies with my manic behavior. His soft-spoken nature with my short temper. His first responder training and my habit of never wearing my seatbelt. His light with my dark. My light with his dark. I find myself thanking God that my genes are the recessive ones because he possesses more good in his pinky finger than I do in my whole body."
I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip doesn't release until June but I recommend pre-ordering the paperback like I did so it'll arrive on release day.
Alicia Cook is back, with her best work to date. I love seeing writers grow. I love seeing writers give readers an honest glimpse into their lives. This is not one-size-fits-all poetry. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip is a diary, a time capsule. Reading this collection helped me to know the author better. That's very important to me when it comes to poetry. Am I Doing This Right? was by far, my favorite piece. I would have to quote the entire piece to show what I connected to.
Here are some lines from other pieces I loved.
"You lose someone and their ghost splatters
everywhere. Black as squid ink in the fibers of your
clothes. In the ringlets of your unwashed hair. In the
last glass from which they drank. In the passenger
seat of your car."
"You need to stop internalizing other people’s pain, my mother tells me on the phone. It’s not healthy. She is right; I have done this all of my life. Like an overused sponge, I soak up all the sadness around me, feel it as if it were my own, and expect it not to seep into my own life."
"While they pair his dominant with my recessive genes, all I could think of is his indecisiveness with my selfishness. His neat freak tendencies with my manic behavior. His soft-spoken nature with my short temper. His first responder training and my habit of never wearing my seatbelt. His light with my dark. My light with his dark. I find myself thanking God that my genes are the recessive ones because he possesses more good in his pinky finger than I do in my whole body."
I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip doesn't release until June but I recommend pre-ordering the paperback like I did so it'll arrive on release day.
August 20, 2018
Wow, I'm not entirely sure where to start with this book... When I heard that Alicia Cook was coming out with another poetry book, I was quite excited since I thoroughly enjoyed Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately. So out to the bookstore I went to go buy this book and within that same week, I started to read it and honestly, I really had to space this book out because I was overwhelmed with emotion. Alicia Cook did an amazing job again with creating I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip; from the heartfelt poetry to the original music, I was truly moved.
Usually when I read poetry that deals with a significant other and a romantic relationship, I usually don't get it and tend to disconnect with the author, but in this case, I just connected with Alicia Cook and just really felt her emotions through the pages. The poems that really got to me were the ones where she talked about losing her cousin. I myself have recently lost someone who meant the world to me and just reading Alicia Cook's poem about her cousin really hit me like a ton of bricks. You can feel the raw emotion and the turmoil that she felt with losing her cousin and it just really resonated with me because I'm feeling the same way.
One thing that I found super unique about this book was Alicia Cook's original music. It was so cool reading the lyrics as a separate poem and then going to listen to the actual song. It was so interesting to see how you may read something and come up with your own interpretation and then by hearing someone sing the same exact words you get a totally different meaning. This is one thing I have to praise Alicia for; she made herself a unique poet by also coming up with songs that allow readers to physically hear the emotions that she was trying to transmit to us through her poetry.
In all, while there were some poems I didn't 100% relate to or understand, I would say the majority of them really resonated with me and really hit my heart. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip is truly a unique poetry book that stands out from today's "regular" poetry books and Alicia Cook is definitely a breath of fresh air in the poetry world...
Usually when I read poetry that deals with a significant other and a romantic relationship, I usually don't get it and tend to disconnect with the author, but in this case, I just connected with Alicia Cook and just really felt her emotions through the pages. The poems that really got to me were the ones where she talked about losing her cousin. I myself have recently lost someone who meant the world to me and just reading Alicia Cook's poem about her cousin really hit me like a ton of bricks. You can feel the raw emotion and the turmoil that she felt with losing her cousin and it just really resonated with me because I'm feeling the same way.
One thing that I found super unique about this book was Alicia Cook's original music. It was so cool reading the lyrics as a separate poem and then going to listen to the actual song. It was so interesting to see how you may read something and come up with your own interpretation and then by hearing someone sing the same exact words you get a totally different meaning. This is one thing I have to praise Alicia for; she made herself a unique poet by also coming up with songs that allow readers to physically hear the emotions that she was trying to transmit to us through her poetry.
In all, while there were some poems I didn't 100% relate to or understand, I would say the majority of them really resonated with me and really hit my heart. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip is truly a unique poetry book that stands out from today's "regular" poetry books and Alicia Cook is definitely a breath of fresh air in the poetry world...
August 6, 2019
Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Review also found here.
As a note, an e-galley of this novel was sent to me via NetGalley by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not effect my opinions in any way.
I've said it once, I'll say it a billion times: Alicia Cook is one of the best voices in modern poetry. She never fails in moving me with simple prose and the ties between her poems and music make reading her work an even better experience. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip had a lot to live up to. Alicia Cook's first published collection, Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately, was/is one of my all-time favourite releases in poetry.
Cook has a way about her prose that feels so alight with everything that makes us human. There's strength and vulnerability. There's loss and love. Everything that a person can feel. My favourite part about Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately was its connection to music; the intimacy behind a poet's words is not unlike the expressions musicians use in their lyrics. I've always had this theory that the quickest way to knowing a person's soul is in the music they adore. So many of us find ourselves in music and poetry and Alicia Cook captures the essence of that statement beautifully. We know what Cook allows us, as readers, to know--both in her prose and in the music listed in every poem.
Alicia Cook's power remains in her ability to express herself in every line. There's an honesty to her that you cannot contain or replicate and proves to readers why she is a leader in the strongest voices of modern poetry. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip connects in a way that is crisp and to the point--an exceptionally beautiful nod to our humanity and Cook's ability to speak freely to her audience.
There's this uniqueness to her expression that I cannot quite describe but her longtime fans will be quick to acknowledge. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip proves that Cook is bound to get better with time; her first release captivated me, and this one gripped me further.
Once more, there's this rawness to her prose that I simply cannot get enough with. Alicia Cook is, hands down, a favourite in the poetry community and I cannot sing her praises enough. Name one emotion, and you'll feel it. And so continues the tradition of feeling all you can during one collection. Alicia Cook does it again!
As a note, an e-galley of this novel was sent to me via NetGalley by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not effect my opinions in any way.
I've said it once, I'll say it a billion times: Alicia Cook is one of the best voices in modern poetry. She never fails in moving me with simple prose and the ties between her poems and music make reading her work an even better experience. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip had a lot to live up to. Alicia Cook's first published collection, Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately, was/is one of my all-time favourite releases in poetry.
Cook has a way about her prose that feels so alight with everything that makes us human. There's strength and vulnerability. There's loss and love. Everything that a person can feel. My favourite part about Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately was its connection to music; the intimacy behind a poet's words is not unlike the expressions musicians use in their lyrics. I've always had this theory that the quickest way to knowing a person's soul is in the music they adore. So many of us find ourselves in music and poetry and Alicia Cook captures the essence of that statement beautifully. We know what Cook allows us, as readers, to know--both in her prose and in the music listed in every poem.
Alicia Cook's power remains in her ability to express herself in every line. There's an honesty to her that you cannot contain or replicate and proves to readers why she is a leader in the strongest voices of modern poetry. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip connects in a way that is crisp and to the point--an exceptionally beautiful nod to our humanity and Cook's ability to speak freely to her audience.
There's this uniqueness to her expression that I cannot quite describe but her longtime fans will be quick to acknowledge. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip proves that Cook is bound to get better with time; her first release captivated me, and this one gripped me further.
Once more, there's this rawness to her prose that I simply cannot get enough with. Alicia Cook is, hands down, a favourite in the poetry community and I cannot sing her praises enough. Name one emotion, and you'll feel it. And so continues the tradition of feeling all you can during one collection. Alicia Cook does it again!
May 23, 2018
Thank you Netgalley and Andrews McMeel publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This was my first book by Alicia Cook and let me just say that I truly enjoyed this poetry book. It's proven difficult for me to find a poetry book that I actually love. There are some poems that I didn't relate to (and that's normal) even if I wasn't able to I know there are readers who will. Some poems really hit me hard and some brought tears to my eyes. Alicia has a different style of writing than most writers and poets. I truly can't wait until all the poetry lovers and readers get to read this book!
|| Blog || Instagram ||
This was my first book by Alicia Cook and let me just say that I truly enjoyed this poetry book. It's proven difficult for me to find a poetry book that I actually love. There are some poems that I didn't relate to (and that's normal) even if I wasn't able to I know there are readers who will. Some poems really hit me hard and some brought tears to my eyes. Alicia has a different style of writing than most writers and poets. I truly can't wait until all the poetry lovers and readers get to read this book!
|| Blog || Instagram ||
July 14, 2018
I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip was my first poetry read by Alicia Cook and it won't be my last.
This poetry collection is unique in the way that I've never read anything quite like it and I'm sure it's the only one of it's kind.
This collections is split up in two parts - The EP and The LP, with original songs scattered through out with links to direct you on where to hear them. There was also featured poets as well.
I found myself tabbing a lot more in The EP section but some of my most favorite poetry are in the LP section. <3 These are the ones I just couldn't stop thinking about.
My top three favorite poetry pieces are..
-Ready, set...
"collect your courage"
-Buried Alive
"Even when starting over is a choice and not a force of your hand, it still may be the hardest thing. We just forget how difficult it really was, because sometimes the hardest thing is also the best thing."
-You Are Not The Sun
"I no longer live in a world
that revolves around your ego.
You are not a life source.
You are not the sun.
It's the best feeling in the world to know
I haven't just moved on.
I've eclipsed you."
This poetry collection is unique in the way that I've never read anything quite like it and I'm sure it's the only one of it's kind.
This collections is split up in two parts - The EP and The LP, with original songs scattered through out with links to direct you on where to hear them. There was also featured poets as well.
I found myself tabbing a lot more in The EP section but some of my most favorite poetry are in the LP section. <3 These are the ones I just couldn't stop thinking about.
My top three favorite poetry pieces are..
-Ready, set...
"collect your courage"
-Buried Alive
"Even when starting over is a choice and not a force of your hand, it still may be the hardest thing. We just forget how difficult it really was, because sometimes the hardest thing is also the best thing."
-You Are Not The Sun
"I no longer live in a world
that revolves around your ego.
You are not a life source.
You are not the sun.
It's the best feeling in the world to know
I haven't just moved on.
I've eclipsed you."
June 5, 2018
Thank you to Alicia Cook for selecting me to be one of your readers who got an early copy of your latest poetry book. All opinions are my own.
I rate this a 5 out of 5 stars.
I don't know that I've reviewed poetry on my blog before, but If you follow me on IG you know that I love Alicia Cook, I have since I came across her book "Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately" I relate to her, I've experienced some of the same things she has, so reading her words, resonates with me. I think she has an amazing talent, she writes on the hardest topics, with such grace, beauty, and emotion. She pours her heart and soul out, and it shows.
In this collection, she has some very hard subject matter, while it might not be common, or popular for other writers/poets to write about, Alicia does. There are quite a few poems in here that needed to be written, and they needed to be read. I'm glad that I got to read them, and I love that I've gotten to follow Alicia on her journey. I'm a fan for life, and I will always support her writing.
I rate this a 5 out of 5 stars.
I don't know that I've reviewed poetry on my blog before, but If you follow me on IG you know that I love Alicia Cook, I have since I came across her book "Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately" I relate to her, I've experienced some of the same things she has, so reading her words, resonates with me. I think she has an amazing talent, she writes on the hardest topics, with such grace, beauty, and emotion. She pours her heart and soul out, and it shows.
In this collection, she has some very hard subject matter, while it might not be common, or popular for other writers/poets to write about, Alicia does. There are quite a few poems in here that needed to be written, and they needed to be read. I'm glad that I got to read them, and I love that I've gotten to follow Alicia on her journey. I'm a fan for life, and I will always support her writing.
April 5, 2018
I’ve been waiting for a year to read more from Alicia and I WAS NOT DISAPPOINTED! There was one slight thing that I wasn’t to crazy about, and that was some of the songs/poems that she co-wrote with other people. Some of them just read weird or I just didn’t care for the songs. I would have preferred a single artist because I think that would have made it easier to listen and follow along with, as you could get used to voice and get into it more. But that didn’t even take away from my overall enjoyment of this! I still loved just about everything else about this book. I loved how it touched on grief and relationships. It flowed SO WELL. I think she has such a cohesive writing style that it didn’t seem jarring at times, it just felt like it all belonged in this book together. I can’t wait to reread these books and to read more from Alicia in the future!
June 21, 2018
Such a delight to see a fellow Jersey native get her work out there! Hearing her speak about pieces and read in person was absolutely delightful and made the experience so much more amazing. Such relatable poems. It’s inspiring to read pieces both in the thick of such despair and yet so ready to crawl back into the sunshine.
April 10, 2019
I enjoyed SIBFL but her latest is her best work. It was more vivid and vulnerable. I found myself tearing up reading some poems. She's definitely one the strongest and unique writers in the social media/pop poetry game.
June 4, 2019
Really enjoyed this collection, though not as much as her other collection, Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately. I Hope My Voice Doesn't Skip has a higher quantity of longer poems, which I generally haven't had the taste for. Her previous work that I have read focused much more on short to medium length poems, which is probably why I enjoyed that collection more. This book contains poems on topics like mental illness, acceptance, relationships, confidence, and the like. Same as her last collection this one follows the music motif. It has written songs as some of the poems that you can actually listen to on Alicia Cook's website (www.thealiciacook.com). Overall, I enjoyed these poems, even if I dragged a little on the longer ones!
May 26, 2018
I read this book as an ARC. I spent the afternoon into the evening reading Alicia Cook’s new book of poetry entitled I Hope My Voice Doesn’t Skip. It took me a few poems to get the feel for her voice and style of poetry but after I acclimated, I enjoyed her work. I would call her a poet for everyday. She writes about the life lived with human foibles and heartbreaks. But her work is not hopeless. She offers courage to overcome and even to rise above the struggles and keep pressing forward. It has been said that loss motivates most all writing and while I’m not 100% convinced of that thought, most of the work in this book takes into account the losses experienced by one who has had to courage to love someone else and not only romantically but in family relationships and friends. I even found myself in a few of these poems because I, too, am haunted by a great loss in my own life. And isn’t this what a good poet does? I connected and engaged in her work. Among my favorite selections were “More Cherry Blossoms Than D.C. “,”Ortley Beach”, “Ready, Set . . .”, “Transitions”, “For You”, “Absent”, “I’m Sorry For Your Loss”, and my favorite “The Stains Left Behind” For poetry about real life, read this book.
March 30, 2018
I always feel like my reviews and ratings of poetry books are a bit harsher. It's probably because I have to find them either breathtaking or ingenious to give them a higher rating.
I think, overall, this collection just wasn't for me. Although I liked and was able to relate to some poems, only a few of them really stood out to me. Still, it's a quick, enjoyable read and I'm sure many will like this.
*I received a free copy of this book in an exchange for an honest review.*
I think, overall, this collection just wasn't for me. Although I liked and was able to relate to some poems, only a few of them really stood out to me. Still, it's a quick, enjoyable read and I'm sure many will like this.
*I received a free copy of this book in an exchange for an honest review.*
April 30, 2019
"This world sure is beautiful
without all the noise we make.
The falling rain splits the afternoon
open,
allowing room for self-reflection
in the middle of this loud day."
Some of my favorite poems were a hypnotic jerk, the 90s seem so long ago, traffic signs, hard of hearing, transitions & sailing on.
without all the noise we make.
The falling rain splits the afternoon
open,
allowing room for self-reflection
in the middle of this loud day."
Some of my favorite poems were a hypnotic jerk, the 90s seem so long ago, traffic signs, hard of hearing, transitions & sailing on.
April 10, 2018
A solid collection of poetry. I keep finding myself drawn to "Instagram poets," which to me sounds like it'd be a derisive term, but in most cases (this included) I've been really impressed. Cook is a confident poet addressing some hard-hitting topics. My only real critique is that I'd like to see her develop her use of artistic language in her future poetry.
June 11, 2018
I received an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Alicia Cook’s new poetry collection in exchange for an honest review. This book deals with some heavy topics, so I suggest every reader looks at the Trigger Warning (TW) at the beginning of the collection and in the table of contents before reading the poems.
I fell in love with Alicia’s work after I read her first book, “Stuff I’ve Been Feeling Lately”. I have been craving more of her beautiful poetry since I closed that book about a year ago. I was thrilled when I was able to get in touch with Alicia, and I was even happier when she agreed to send me an ARC of her new poetry collection, “I Hope My Voice Doesn’t Skip”! Alicia’s work is unique in the way that every single line seems to tug at your heartstrings – at least, this is what her work does for me. It is rare that I find a poet that I can connect with on such an emotional level in so many individual pieces of their work.
The first poem, which has the same title as her first book, instantly drew me in. I knew I needed to keep reading, as I was completely captivated. There was not one poem in “I Hope My Voice Doesn’t Skip” that disappointed me. I enjoyed every single piece in this collection. Although, some of my favorites include: ‘Some Piranhas are Vegetarians’, ‘The ’90s Seem So Long Ago’, ‘Wandering, Wondering’, ‘Pressed Dandelions’, ‘”I Am Sorry for Your Loss”’, ‘The Stains Left Behind’, ‘Dear God’, ‘For You’, ‘Gloves on Radiators’, ‘Detergent & Denial’, ‘Springtime in the Cemetery’, ‘Contrails’, ‘Am I Doing This Right?’, ‘Buried Alive’, ‘I Lose My Appetite Worrying If You’ve Eaten’, and ‘Loose Threads Get Lost’. I also adored how the ‘chapters’ were broken down – Alicia has a talent of bringing both music and poetry together in a way that never seem forced, and is honestly something I find quite fascinating.
After reading this book, I finally feel that someone really understands my struggles. Between topics surrounding health, loss, love, and more, there is a poem for everyone. This book touches on so many things, and I feel as though there is something that will make everyone feel something truly incredible. This is a book I will hold close to my heat for a long time – I know I will re-read this collection when I need a reminder that someone understands my struggles, when I need a good cry, or when I just want some comforting words to help me remember that I am really never alone.
Alicia makes you remember that everyone has their struggles and that you really can overcome them. This book is so empowering, raw, and honest. I encourage you all to indulge in this one of a kind poetry collection. Easily a 5/5 star read.
I fell in love with Alicia’s work after I read her first book, “Stuff I’ve Been Feeling Lately”. I have been craving more of her beautiful poetry since I closed that book about a year ago. I was thrilled when I was able to get in touch with Alicia, and I was even happier when she agreed to send me an ARC of her new poetry collection, “I Hope My Voice Doesn’t Skip”! Alicia’s work is unique in the way that every single line seems to tug at your heartstrings – at least, this is what her work does for me. It is rare that I find a poet that I can connect with on such an emotional level in so many individual pieces of their work.
The first poem, which has the same title as her first book, instantly drew me in. I knew I needed to keep reading, as I was completely captivated. There was not one poem in “I Hope My Voice Doesn’t Skip” that disappointed me. I enjoyed every single piece in this collection. Although, some of my favorites include: ‘Some Piranhas are Vegetarians’, ‘The ’90s Seem So Long Ago’, ‘Wandering, Wondering’, ‘Pressed Dandelions’, ‘”I Am Sorry for Your Loss”’, ‘The Stains Left Behind’, ‘Dear God’, ‘For You’, ‘Gloves on Radiators’, ‘Detergent & Denial’, ‘Springtime in the Cemetery’, ‘Contrails’, ‘Am I Doing This Right?’, ‘Buried Alive’, ‘I Lose My Appetite Worrying If You’ve Eaten’, and ‘Loose Threads Get Lost’. I also adored how the ‘chapters’ were broken down – Alicia has a talent of bringing both music and poetry together in a way that never seem forced, and is honestly something I find quite fascinating.
After reading this book, I finally feel that someone really understands my struggles. Between topics surrounding health, loss, love, and more, there is a poem for everyone. This book touches on so many things, and I feel as though there is something that will make everyone feel something truly incredible. This is a book I will hold close to my heat for a long time – I know I will re-read this collection when I need a reminder that someone understands my struggles, when I need a good cry, or when I just want some comforting words to help me remember that I am really never alone.
Alicia makes you remember that everyone has their struggles and that you really can overcome them. This book is so empowering, raw, and honest. I encourage you all to indulge in this one of a kind poetry collection. Easily a 5/5 star read.
August 4, 2019
“What’s the rush?” p.43
Relatable, beautiful, savored every word.
Relatable, beautiful, savored every word.
May 22, 2018
A new instapoet voice for me, I found the collection quite readable and relatable. Many of the poems included are songs, with links to where you can hear them performed. I like that connection and merge into music. There are usual themes of grief, loss, empowerment, but also reflections on society for issues, in a punchy and effective way.
February 18, 2021
“When there is nothing left to say,
you let go.
You do not allow your heart to suffer.
It has been too good to you to allow it to suffer.”
you let go.
You do not allow your heart to suffer.
It has been too good to you to allow it to suffer.”
April 23, 2018
I received an e-ARC from NetGalley to review. Thank you!
Out: 5th June 2018
"We are all recovering from something. This is for all of us."
After reading "Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately" By Alicia Cook, which instantly turned into my favourite poetry collection, I obviously couldn't wait to read this!
Before I get started I just want to say I am so glad for the trigger warnings in the beginning and also on each of the poems. I think all books should have them and I appreciate when they do.
Favourite poems: "I Am Marked." "Absent" "I Am Sorry For Your Loss" "Hard Of Hearing" "Dear God" "Aunt Em" and "This Isn't About The Number Six" (I don't think I have ever cried so much over a poem the way I did with this one).
While I did miss the song accompaniments from the first poetry collection, I still loved the new direction of this one.
Amazing author, a collection I would 100% recommend and I can't wait to read more!
Out: 5th June 2018
"We are all recovering from something. This is for all of us."
After reading "Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately" By Alicia Cook, which instantly turned into my favourite poetry collection, I obviously couldn't wait to read this!
Before I get started I just want to say I am so glad for the trigger warnings in the beginning and also on each of the poems. I think all books should have them and I appreciate when they do.
Favourite poems: "I Am Marked." "Absent" "I Am Sorry For Your Loss" "Hard Of Hearing" "Dear God" "Aunt Em" and "This Isn't About The Number Six" (I don't think I have ever cried so much over a poem the way I did with this one).
While I did miss the song accompaniments from the first poetry collection, I still loved the new direction of this one.
Amazing author, a collection I would 100% recommend and I can't wait to read more!
June 7, 2018
"But if I'm not pained by their pain,
I have not earned the right to be overjoyed by their joy."
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Just as with Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately, I absolutely loved this collection. The writing is full of emotion and strength. I thought the music collaborations were brilliant and I cannot wait for whatever comes next.
I have not earned the right to be overjoyed by their joy."
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Just as with Stuff I've Been Feeling Lately, I absolutely loved this collection. The writing is full of emotion and strength. I thought the music collaborations were brilliant and I cannot wait for whatever comes next.
April 29, 2018
Alicia doesn’t just write a collection of poetry and put it out into the world. She delivers an entire poetic experience. From content to concept, Alicia never fails to be truly brilliant.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 123 reviews