Eighteen Inches

by Mirtha Michelle Castro Mármol

These poems explore the distance between the head and the heart—and all of the pain, beauty, and hope in between.

This book is one woman’s account of her longing to know herself fully. Her mind, body, and soul. This book might make you cry, fill you with nostalgia, empower you, or even give you hope. You might not see eye to eye with every idea inside, but with any luck you’ll see your soul reflected in its pages. You will question things. You will remember your past. You will be thankful for your present. You will dream a new dream. Above all, you will feel. Welcome to the journey of Eighteen Inches , a battlefield between a woman’s beat-up heart and her complex mind.

Genres: Poetry

224 pages, Paperback

Published September 15, 2020

About the author

Mirtha Michelle Castro Mármol is a Dominican born actress and poet. At the age of five her family migrated to Miami, Florida. She wrote her first poem at the age of six and since then cultivated a passion for poetry. She currently resides in Los Angeles, California. “Letters, To The Men I Have Loved” is her debut as an author. It consists of profound letters and poems directed to various men during different milestones in her life. Her work expresses loss, love, pain, growth and hope.

Reviews

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard-hitting.
Personal.
Mental health.
Coming of age.
Art.
Love, loss and hope.

Yes, you can expect these when you pick up this collection. And the best part is that each of the section starts with a personal account of introduction which is relevant and important for part and yes, the poetry lines becomes more meaningful after reading this detail at the beginning of each section.

Kudos to the author for sharing such private thoughts and experiences.

It's worthwhile picking this up.

It's exhilarating! In a good way!

Perfect for Amanda Lovelace and Rupi Kaur lovers!

Thank you #NetGalley for the book #EighteenInches

[Natalie all_books_great_and_small · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

This book of poems is a very emotional and hard hitting read but very very worth reading. The book is set out in sections starting from 1" to 18"s and before each section of poems is a personal account written by the author as an introduction before the poems. This personal account before each segment really opens your heart and eyes to such a strong, hard hitting, and personal selection of poems that are all the more so due to such strong accounts in between.

[Jungian.Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I read the synopsis of this book on Netgalley, I was intrigued and wanted to know more and I am glad that I requested this book. This book was provided by #Netgalley

This book is a collection of poems and prose that documents or chronologies the life of a woman who had to accept and understand the eighteen inches distance between her heart and her mind. We follow her on a life journey as she learns about heartbreak, acceptance, and as she builds and takes down a wall around her heart.

Trigger warning for rape, emotional trauma, and abortion.

There are a few lines in this book that got to me and one is in the very start
"It worries me that you'll always feel the need to be the one who loves more. And there is a pain in that type of love"
This hit me deeply, as someone who always loved too hard and too deeply, I used to forget how a loving relationship is a two-way thing. People who have not realized this, give and give but never receive and that can be so harmful.

There was also something special about her relationship with God and you could see that everything was in the way she was raised (although sometimes she could be a little condescending to people who according to her "were most likely all raised completely differently" which is not necessarily a bad thing). It was heartbreakingly precious to see how she handled her abortion and how she was unable to tell her mother because she feared her judging gaze (I believe that no matter how god fearing a family is, a daughter should be able to tell her mother anything, or I do hope that my future daughter can tell me anything)

There is a specific poem that I also loved "the paradox of human nature"
"The paradox of human nature is that
we teach each other to expect
supernatural miracles
Yet, when it comes to human relations,
we teach each other
to have no expectations"
I just kept thinking that this is human nature to a T. We place these astronomical expectations or unseen and alien things when we can't even place human relationships on the same slate.

This book delves into love, pride, courage, trust, doubt, selfishness and much more. I would higher recommend it.

[♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

*Thank you netgalley for the free arc.*

Captivating and beautiful and showing personal experience. Eighteen Inches truly grasps love, hope and loss providing a truly great and memorable read.

[Sassy Sarah Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eighteen Inches: The Distance Between the Heart and the Mind by Mirtha Michelle Castro Mármol

4.75 stars

This is a poetry and prose collection that focuses on the theme of there being eighteen inches between the heart and the mind and the battles that author faces with love, romance, religion, sexual assault, death, and cultural experiences. The introduction sets up the title of the book through a story where the author gets in a fight and the advice her father gives her afterwards. I loved the infusion of each chapter starting with prose and being followed by poetry. It worked so much for me. I thought the poems were beautiful and the prose was heart wrenching and steeped in honest words and experiences. I cried multiple times throughout reading the collection. I kept screenshotting poems and sending them to my best friend because they were so good. This collection was wonderful. It was full of pain, suffering, beauty, and hope. I loved the balance of prose and poetry. It was beautifully done and it worked so well. I will leave a trigger warning for date rape though because the chapter on it was very intense and goes though a wide of emotions before, after, and when the trauma comes back up after the author tried to bury it. This collection touches on many important topics and I want more readers to know about it. I can’t recommend this collection enough. It is worth reading and I have feeling it will not be popular because the cover is not as mainstream or appealing as most collections.

Whimsical Writing Scale: 4.5

Plotastic Scale: 5

Cover Thoughts: I love the blurred photograph, but it does kind of make me dizzy if I look at it for too long.

Thank you, Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing, for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

[Malli (Chapter Malliumpkin) · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC was provided by NetGalley in exchanged for an honest review.

This review is being published before the release date (May 5th, 2020)

Content/Trigger Warnings: Cheating, toxic relationships, fighting/graphic violence, assault, sexual assault, rape, trauma/PTSD, guilt, abuse, grief, death/loss of a loved one, anxiety, abortion, sex, and much more!

"If I must burn again, I shall continue to rise, and from the ashes be reborn, again and again."

Friends, this poetry collection was an emotional roller coaster. I cried for the majority of this whole book. It's not often books touch the scars of my heart, but when they do, they leave a lasting imprint. That's what Eight Inches did to me. It left an imprint and awoke so many of my own personal memories. This poetry collection is a raw letter of emotions from the author to the reader, for you to see the author for who she is and what she has endured.

This book is broken into eighteen sections; each a moment, a lesson, or a memory the author has encountered to craft them into the strong soul they are today. Each section filled with pain, loss, the struggles of coming of age, and learning to love anew. This collection has something everyone will feel in their heart or find locked within their memories for many of us have endured similar things the author writes in each section. As always, I may have stated it above, but please practice self-care while reading this poetry collection because there are a lot of trigger warnings.

"The past is not the past if it continues to live with you."

While I loved many parts of this, there was one part I felt the absolute need to talk about and address. When you enter the thirteenth section of this book, where it claims that happiness is a choice. Now this may not seem like an issue at first, the passage talks about how we have the choice to be happy and the tone of the entire passage didn't sit right with me. For those who suffer with depression or struggle with mental health, this passage can be quite harmful. This isn't to say that this wasn't the case for the author, but as a reader who struggles with mental health, I was quite confused and had to read the passage five times before the tone of this section finally sank in. No one is always happy all the time, to say happiness is a choice is to say that depression isn't a real illness, it's to say those who struggle with mental health aren't valid because they have a "choice" to be happy. In my opinion, this section could have been worded better and in a less harmful light.

Overall, I truly appreciate this poetry collection and I truly wish I could have given it a full five stars. This book had the potential to shine a light on mental health and how to truly balance living with mental health struggles, but there was an opportunity missed in this book. Otherwise, this book addresses many important topics not often talked about and once again I remind you to please practice self-care while reading this book because there are a lot of trigger warnings that this book addresses.

The quotes above were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.


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[Dora Okeyo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book right here...let me compose myself....
This book will bring you to the moments, hurt and pain you've tried so hard to forget about and not in a bad way, more in a way that makes me feel like you too can heal and this is only true if you choose to read to the very end. And trust me, you need to...
Thanks Netgalley for the eARC.

[sel ✿ white rose stories · Rating 4 out of 5]

I requested this one on NetGalley a while back and was so delighted to have received a copy. This poetry book is quite a long one and it took me a few days to get through it but I really enjoyed it and some of the poems touched my heart.

*Many thank yous to Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing me with an eARC!*

[Full review will be posted on whiterosestories.com soon!]

[Shivani · Rating 5 out of 5]

*4.5 stars

This book shook me to my core. I had yet to read poetry and prose as powerful and relatable as this collection. There were so many truths spoken that my heart broke both for myself and the author. Then with those same words she brought hope and light and stitched my heart back together again. The formatting of this book was a mix of prose which was written like a memoir about the author's experiences and then followed by poetry. The poetry was of course stunning in itself. It was powerful and packed a punch. However, the parts that really got me, surprisingly was the prose. I don't read memoirs and the style of the prose read like one, but I didn't mind it one bit because each word that was articulated by the author was meant to be there, meant to open the reader's heart to their own experiences that were similar. Each prose piece felt like I was reading a moment out of a fictional story instead of someone's actual life. The themes of this book centered around love, all kinds of it, romantic, platonic, familial, etc. It filled my own heart with so much hope it genuinely might have burst. But these weren't the only themes. Marmol was successfully able to intertwine her life experiences with huge life lessons that really opened my eyes to a whole new perspective to view the world from. I found a piece of myself in each of her stories even though they were personal ones, there was a part of each that I read over and over and took me into my own mind through my own memories. I'm just in awe of the writing and how much I fell in love with this book. I wasn't expecting it at all. I was completely captivated the whole time and though there were some ideas that I didn't necessarily agree with, it was a perspective that I appreciated and could implement into my own life. This book will remain on my mind for a long time. 

[Keri | Books_and_Hookers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Objectively, this is a great poetry book and I found myself connecting with certain poems.

Personally, I could not relate to most of what the author went through, so I don’t think a lot of the poem’s resonated with me the way I would’ve liked them too.

So this is a not for me, but may definitely be for someone else!!

If you like poetry, check it out!

[lea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This poetry collection feels like someone read my mind and put into words some of my experiences and feelings. It's a very hard hitting, personal account of love, loss and hope.

I love the formatting of the book and that each section has a introduction of personal explanation that makes the poems that follow all the more powerful and relevant.

This book was truly a rollar coaster of emotions and I cried for a lot of it, even the parts that I have no personal experience with. I highly recommend this collection.

Thank you netgalley and publishers for the opportunity to review this book

[Alexandra Galván · Rating 5 out of 5]

TW: Anxiety, depression, death, rape, sex, abortion.

"I am a woman who lives and does everything passionately. When I love, I love hard; when I hurt, hurt badly."

It was difficult to read this book. Difficult to the point I considered stopping. It made me cry since the beginning and made me remember things I thought I was ready to let go. So, pay attention to the back cover's warning and mine: "this book might make you cry..." Even so, I regained courage and continued. Yes, I kept crying, but less this last time. The other part of the warning is also true, by the way: "{this book might] fill you with nostalgia, empower you, or even give you hope."

It's both sad and comforting to know that we are not alone when it comes to heartbreaks, even if it seems that way. Castro Mármol writes down feelings of pain and longing that we might not know how to express through letters and poems, which might seem familiar from other poets nowadays, but that have the precise words to connect directly to you, even if you are not experiencing any of these feelings.

"Eighteen Inches" is an inch-by-inch journey that shows us that love might come and go and that it can be also found again, even if it comes in a different way. I don't feel empowered or hopeful after reading it but I think it's because I'm not there yet, not because this book fails in its purpose. I'm sure that it can be just right for someone else.

I'm eternally grateful to Mirtha, who decided to share a part of her soul to us.

I could read this book thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing ;)

[R A I N · Rating 5 out of 5]

READ FULL REVIEW HERE.

Sitting here alone at night, as I record my thoughts, I feel as if I just created a deep connection with someone whom I haven’t even met and maybe never will. It feels mystifying yet completely normal.

Such an intensity of feelings – my god, I have never felt like this before. Reading her little reflections on a lost love, her past trauma, her hurt, her pain – it was like she had transferred them to me and I was reliving them all over again. My heart felt heavy with her poignant confessions. It was almost as if I would burst out into tears – her share of tears – and then maybe, maybe she would feel better, for I WANT her to feel better. That was the power her writing commanded over me.

Reading Eighteen Inches: The Distance between the Heart and Mind by Mirtha Michelle Castro Mármol is like experiencing different hues of life blended beautifully and yet retaining their originality. No matter how you are feeling right now – stuck, unloved, afraid, unhappy, adventurous, mischievous, pitiful – this book is the answer.

I will go as far as to say that YOU NEED THIS BOOK IN YOUR LIFE. DESPERATELY. IMMEDIATELY.

[Too Tired to be Poetic · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a really hard time trying to decide what to rate this poetry collection, but in the end, the pros outweighed the cons, and overall, I really enjoyed it. Marmol has a very simplistic yet elegant poetry style that manages to be both gentle and brutally honest. I really, really loved the poems themselves, and I will be reading them in the future over and over.

However, with that being said I had two big issues with the book: I was not a fan of the short personal essays that started out each section. I would have much preferred that she had simply put the poems in the sections by themselves. They’re powerful enough without needed in to explain what ‘pain’ or ‘bravery’ is in a short essay. It was just unnecessary. The second thing was in one of these short essays, in section 13. Marmol states that “happiness is a choice”... I find this completely wrong and inaccurate; particularly for those suffering mental illness and hardship (which is what the majority of her poems are about). I think it’s borderline dangerous to slip something like that in trouble the book, particularly when those who will pick this poem collection up most likely suffer from some of the same issues she writes about. Between those two issues, I almost knocked the rating down to a 3/5, regardless of the gorgeous nature of her writing. All in all, however, I know that I enjoyed it immensely.

[Genevieve Singzon · Rating 4 out of 5]

EIGHTEEN INCHES by Mirtha Michelle Castro Marmol

Chanced upon this gem one day as I was browsing shopee for a certain book I had in mind.

The title itself caught my attention and upon reading the story behind it, I thought it's cute and comforting. This book, however, isn't cute. This is a collection of prose and poetry and also includes essays as introduction to every topic. This book is too personal, the author even revealed some of her most vulnerable moments and secrets in life and how she rose from the low and dark points of her life.

I found her essays relateable, comforting, profound, beautiful and soulful. I imagine her writing the book on quiet afternoons filled with fearless self-reflection.

My most favorite part of the book is her take on happiness. She might seem too positive and a little cliche on it, but I actually did relate a lot. During this pandemic, I became less drawn into material things and more towards contentment and I really thought that the author's point is very much feasible. The story of her Nana is also remarkable and heartwarming. It showed that family doesn't mean blood, it is belongingness and feeling at home. 🤍

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

What first attracted me to this book was the stunning cover. But then, the explanation of what "eighteen inches" meant drew me in further with a sharp depiction of violence. Written with an aching vulnerability, Mármol tells her readers of things she used to only release into solitude. It is full of want and desperate for connection. This collection is full of pain from past memories and doesn't shy away from sharing them. It felt like she was trying to rebuild herself with her poetry and prose, by talking through what she'd experienced in life and coming to new realizations about her hurt and healing. I preferred her prose to her poetry. Her poetry often ended with a mantra of sorts serving a reminder for healing. I felt like there was more insight to be gained from her prose. It was a beautiful intimacy. #eighteeninches #netgalley

[Edith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was beautiful, heart warming, raw & truthful.

I was captivated by what this book brought, this was my first dip in the water for poetry and I was definitely taken on a ride. The honesty, the truthfulness of facing your heartbreak, love, mistakes and the decisions we make was absolutely so touching and it hit right at home.

Some poems did get to me, I found that they gave me light and comfort even though I didn’t know that’s what I needed. This was absolutely amazing and I could tell how much work and soul this author put into her craft. It’s like I have a look at her soul.

I did struggle to connect to some passages and that’s why this wasn’t 5 stars for me. But that doesn’t take away from my enjoyment of this book.


I received a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you Netgalley

[Erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection was so open and honest. Mirtha Michelle Castro Mármol digs deep into her trauma, faith, love, and more. That said, I just don't know if this collection was for me, but I know people in my life that this would be perfect for. Personally, the prose bogged me down. The flow of the eighteen parts also kind of messed with me. For example, some sections would have three poems while others would have seven. I loved her poems on loss and "the one that got away." These felt so real and I really understood her in those. But the ones on faith really felt surface level to me. This could be because the author and I have different faith views so I just don't understand where she's coming from with those. Overall this was a good collection, that I think you can find wisdom from at different points in your life.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 out of 5 simply because my expectations for this read were underwhelmed.

Don't get me wrong, the poetry/prose was AMAZING and I enjoyed reading through the words of Mirtha Michelle. I felt a sense of peace and understanding, of maturity and fulfillment. Whereas she dove deeper into her emotional state, she still kept the most intimate parts of her concealed.
As usual, I tabbed and noted my way through this collection with an open mind and a kind heart.

However, my issue with this read was that I wasn't moved to points where I've been moved by MMCM before. I know the ability Mirtha Michelle possess and I don't think she "matched her caliber" in this one.

Overall, I would recommend Eighteen Inches as the collection may be better assisting to another soul's journey.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have received this title via NetGalley and publishers in exchange for an honest review


This was a beautiful collection of poetry and short stories. They were raw and real. They touched upon all the possible scenarios a person can be feeling or experiencing at any point. However, I did not like or agree with the chapter about Happiness. I felt that chapter was very poor in taste. It said happiness is a choice and I got the vibe that the author was looking down at whoever made the choice. I believe happiness is not a choice in the way the author believes. I think in this chapter, the author negated a lot of feelings people experience with this.

[Chelsea · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received an advanced version of this book through NetGalley to review.

I personally had trouble connecting with the material and have some fundamental belief differences that made the poems and stories less impactful to me. However, I believe that others may find the tales of struggle and growth uplifting.

The book is structured into 18 sections each detailing an important topic in the author’s life. Following the short essay there are poems relating to the topic. Some of the material discussed may be triggering.

[Luna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the first half but once she started talking about god and faith I zoned out because she made statements about religion as if they were fact rather than unproven personal beliefs. By the last chapter it sounded like a sermon or manifesto trying to convert people to the love of the "divine" which really put me off.

I also would have preferred more poetry and less prose. And fewer opinions stated as fact.

Also, "happiness is a choice" is only a choice for the very privileged. Great if you have that privilege. And choice.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is definitely one of the more hard-hitting and unique poetry collections that I’ve read. Because of the different format, with a few pages at the beginning of each chapter dedicated to sharing the author’s experiences, I felt that each poem was very clearly meaningful. The organization of this collection really added to the depth of emotion I could feel with each poem. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for more modern poetry that still retains a lot of pure emotion.

[Lynsea Montanari · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was looking for a poetry book to aid in my healing journey and this certainly exceeded my expectations. At the Same time it was not what I excepted at all. I don’t usually like long passages in my poetry books. However in this book the passages sucked me in and felt relevant. This is now one of my favorites! It wasn’t that the poetry was lyrical or gave me goosebumps( it didn’t). Instead it was her story. Her story made the book the beautiful creation it was. I would recommend!

[Debfictionista · Rating 5 out of 5]

life is not about what we didn’t get. It is about wisdom gained and how we return it to the world—that is how we can learn to live.- Mirtha Michelle Castro Mármol
📚#eighteeninchesbook is such a beautiful book packed with wisdom, healing, and love.

I hardly ever browse the prose and poetry section at bookstores but so glad I did this time cause I found this gem! I will read this book over and over! So much healing happened!

[Bea (beansbookshelves) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley.

This poetry collection written by Mirtha Michelle Castro Marmol is all about women empowerment, mental health and such. It's a well-written book. However, it didn't appeal to me as much as I thought when I started reading it. Rating: 3/5 stars

[Georgi_Lvs_Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Every decision we make is based on eighteen inches - the distance between the heart and the mind.’

Mirtha has created a collection of poetry about her longing to know herself fully - mind, body and soul.

A lovely collection of poems.

I like that with each section of poems we got to know more about Mirtha and her experiences.

Perfect for poetry readers.

[Erika Sarutobi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

I really loved the first part of the book and was about to give it 4.5-4.75 stars but the closer it got to the ending, the more the rating went down for me. Each chapter has a story before the poems that will have a similar vein to it but the last chapters were more love poem and barely were about the same topic as the story it was in :/

FRTC

[Jessamy Hintz · Rating 3 out of 5]

“It worries me that you’ll always feel the need to be the one who loves more. And there is pain in that type of love.”

Heartfelt poetry that focuses on the connection between the head and the heart. How both can be complicated, but love conquers the battlefield in the end, whether it be self love, romantic love, platonic love, or any other type of love.

[Shannon O'Connor · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this collection. I felt at times it was a bit unoriginal in the sense that I've read very similar poems before. But then there were poems that I really enjoyed. I did not like the paragraphs explaining each new section. I found that to be super unnecessary and bothersome.