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Sad Birds Still Sing
'Sad Birds Still Sing' is a highly anticipated book of poetry from anonymous author Faraway. In less than a year, he has become one of the most recognizable figures on the platform he writes: Instagram (@farawaypoetry). In this book of selected poems and writings, Faraway takes the reader on a journey of discovery, with a message of hope running as the main artery through the pages. 'Sad Birds Still Sing' fearlessly dives into the depths of the human condition, tackling topics such as new and old love, heartbreak, loss, anxiety, self-love, dreaming, and much more. With an emphasis on short-form poetry, worlds and ideas, emotions and thoughts are woven together on the pages.
172 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2017
180 people are currently reading
1641 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 153 reviews
February 15, 2024
~ How poetic, the power of the heart, to continue its beating on the nights that we wish it would stop.~
October 18, 2017
Simply beautiful. Every poetry is simple yet powerful, this book speaks right to your heart and soul.
April 14, 2018
I absolutely loved this poetry collection. There were so many good thoughts and it felt like as I was reading, pieces of my soul were being healed. I like how raw and real these were without being overly specific or personal to experiences. Everyone could relate but you get something different out of it than the person next to you - or the person you’ll be in six months. This was the right poetry collection for me at the right time.
January 24, 2018
Still Sing
I needed this today. I’ve been feeling so incredibly down and alone. These words have touched my heart today in a ways I didn’t even know I needed it. Thank you for that. I will definitely be revisiting this collection of poetry and I totally recommend this to anyone who loves to read :)
Xo,
Rach
I needed this today. I’ve been feeling so incredibly down and alone. These words have touched my heart today in a ways I didn’t even know I needed it. Thank you for that. I will definitely be revisiting this collection of poetry and I totally recommend this to anyone who loves to read :)
Xo,
Rach
November 21, 2023
4⭐️
Fav :
“I lost you, and the world mourned with me: the birds stopped singing, the flowers in the cracks of concrete all withered away, and the sunlight couldn’t reach the ground through the cloud cover all summer long”
“Don’t tell me it
was painful to leave
when you’ve never lived
through the winter that is
abandonment; this is
a cold your soul has
never endured.”
“I keep this thing,
this picture of you,
the last one ever taken,
from the day
you died.
I take it with me
everywhere I go,
to remind myself”
that if I can live on
after the greatest
loss of my life,
I can survive
today, too”
“I have a bad habit
of searching for
beauty in beasts
and forever in
temporary
people.”
“I’ve come to find that I sleep less when I dream more,
that I think less when I feel more,
that the best part about being
trapped in your mind
is that you have a goal:
to get out of it.”
“I don’t want
to forget;
I want to be
okay with
remembering.”
“To be able to
look at you and feel
absolutely nothing,
that’s the kind of
closure I want.”
“Maybe
we just found forever
at the wrong time,
and someday, time
will pull us back
together again.”
After you left Earth, I was left in awe, wondering,
“How is the world still spinning
now that you are
no longer in it?”
In that moment, I realized
you’re still here, living on
in everything your heart
has ever touched.
“—and that is why the world still spins”
October 14, 2019
I've been feeling like getting back to my poetry roots lately and decided to request a few up and coming poetry books through Net Galley to get back into reading it. Poetry was one of my first loves. I majored in creative writing and studied under the amazing Nikki Finney, had over a hundred poems published in literary journals and used to do occasionally scandalous poetry readings in coffee houses and local TV back before I got busy with parenting and more boring elements of grown up life. I was really curious what was being published these days and how it would relate to my old loves like Anne Sexton, Robert Frost, Sylvia Plath, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Theodore Roethke, etc.
I feel great empathy for the author, who calls himself Faraway, and I'm sure that many people (particularly teens) will love this poetry. I just did not care for it. One of the hallmarks of great poetry is that it uses words as art -- they have multiple meanings, or the author blends them so that they are rich with alliteration, rhythm and/or rhyme, they say things in ways that nobody thought of before to say things we've all felt. This is why we adopted thousands of sayings from Shakespeare, because he knew how to say something in a brand new way that perfectly expressed what we felt.
This is not that kind of poetry. There is no real rhythm, flow, layers of meaning, crazy beautiful way of communicating, nothing. It's just Instagram Lite poetry -- sparse words of how sad he is, and occasionally how mad he is (mostly at his parents), and occasionally how sad but hopeful he is and how the reader should hang in there. Sometimes he ends the poems with a hyphen and then a sort of a title or summary (?) in a different font.
An example of one poem:
Quiet moments,
when words are worlds away
when not a sound is being made
but so very much is being said --
I live for those.
--eye contact
I will have to keep looking for some new poetry collections to bring back my love of poetry.
I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.
I feel great empathy for the author, who calls himself Faraway, and I'm sure that many people (particularly teens) will love this poetry. I just did not care for it. One of the hallmarks of great poetry is that it uses words as art -- they have multiple meanings, or the author blends them so that they are rich with alliteration, rhythm and/or rhyme, they say things in ways that nobody thought of before to say things we've all felt. This is why we adopted thousands of sayings from Shakespeare, because he knew how to say something in a brand new way that perfectly expressed what we felt.
This is not that kind of poetry. There is no real rhythm, flow, layers of meaning, crazy beautiful way of communicating, nothing. It's just Instagram Lite poetry -- sparse words of how sad he is, and occasionally how mad he is (mostly at his parents), and occasionally how sad but hopeful he is and how the reader should hang in there. Sometimes he ends the poems with a hyphen and then a sort of a title or summary (?) in a different font.
An example of one poem:
Quiet moments,
when words are worlds away
when not a sound is being made
but so very much is being said --
I live for those.
--eye contact
I will have to keep looking for some new poetry collections to bring back my love of poetry.
I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.
August 25, 2019
1.5/5
Gosh, I really wished I had liked this poetry collection better. I have a soft spot for narrative poetry and Instagram-sized pieces but I believe the key to successful poetry which doesn’t rhyme is mastering internal rhythm, which is something Faraway doesn’t really excel at. Although some verses have imaginative wordplay and beautiful imagery, for the most part this collection struck me as shallow. It didn’t contribute anything new to the topics of mental health and heartbreak, and the metaphors were unoriginal as well.
Gosh, I really wished I had liked this poetry collection better. I have a soft spot for narrative poetry and Instagram-sized pieces but I believe the key to successful poetry which doesn’t rhyme is mastering internal rhythm, which is something Faraway doesn’t really excel at. Although some verses have imaginative wordplay and beautiful imagery, for the most part this collection struck me as shallow. It didn’t contribute anything new to the topics of mental health and heartbreak, and the metaphors were unoriginal as well.
April 20, 2021
This is a very short collection of simple yet heartfelt poetry. While there is little attempt to play with language or structure, I did appreciate the poems on an emotional level.
June 28, 2025
4.5 stars
This is the first poetry book I have ever read front to back and it was a beautiful and emotional journey. The only reason I didn’t rate this one 5 stars is because there were a few poems that seemed a bit monotonous- repetitive words and phrases.
However, most of the poems truly hit me hard and painted a painful a realization with the use of deep imagery. There were several times that I had to sit and stare into the abyss/scream into the void. And I think that is evidence of moving material.
Thank you, Faraway, for a passionate book that often described my own anxieties and reflections.
This is the first poetry book I have ever read front to back and it was a beautiful and emotional journey. The only reason I didn’t rate this one 5 stars is because there were a few poems that seemed a bit monotonous- repetitive words and phrases.
However, most of the poems truly hit me hard and painted a painful a realization with the use of deep imagery. There were several times that I had to sit and stare into the abyss/scream into the void. And I think that is evidence of moving material.
Thank you, Faraway, for a passionate book that often described my own anxieties and reflections.
February 3, 2020
This was powerful. It resonated with me after finally leaving a bad situation, not wallowing in the hurt, but becoming stronger in myself and finding something more than I ever expected that’s better suited for me. Sometimes what we think we want isn’t what we need and once we receive that we realize how lucky we are to have lost what it was only to find better. Thankful for this life and the chance to move forward with the knowledge I’ve gained from loss.
March 7, 2019
When something echoes within your soul directly and fulfills your heart completely, you know it's a 5-star read (and an all-time favourite). I must say, it's a clear and real struggle to review something that has influenced you deeply.
All I want to say for now and probably for ever is that the perfect timing for you to read this poetry book – regardless whether you've read other poetry books before or not – would be if your current or recent state of mind is or has been altered for several external circumstances which have ended up causing you a silent and sudden mental breakdown. In any case, the title speaks for itself: sad birds still sing. They do, we do; you'll do.
May 16, 2018
Came across the work of faraway via the writer’s Instagram profile which I enjoyed pretty much. Since the book wasn’t released in India, I got it delivered here last year through a friend who was travelling from Seattle. After all this effort, the book has been largely disappointing for me. The good parts come along only once in a while. Don’t want to leave a discouraging feedback but may be farwaway’s poetry didn’t click just with me and I am struggling to read it till the end. Nevertheless, wish you the best for your works to come.
September 11, 2019
I am so thankful that I was able to read this poetry collection. When I decided to start reading this I was in a weird mood kind of down in life. But, this collection made me feel like other people feel this way too and that I wasn’t alone. I’m a domestic violence survivor and this book was definitely encouraging! Keep up the amazing work. I loved the section separations with the birds and the fact I felt super connected the entire time I was reading. It was very easy to read and the language used was absolutely beautiful.
December 22, 2019
Calling this poetry has to stop.
July 25, 2023
Hands down one of my favourite poetry reads to date! This book was exactly what I needed during the time in my life in which it was read. Every page is so beautifully written and it feels as though each poem pertains to you personally. I will definitely be reading this book over and over again in the future!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚
May 27, 2021
Faraway is anonymous poet which I find so interesting! Loved his poetry.
September 19, 2025
Not for me. Felt like it was giving middle schoolers notes app
June 8, 2022
Emotional poetry. What's not to love?
September 29, 2019
Thank you to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for the digital advanced readers copy of this book! All my opinions are my own.
"Sad Birds Still Sing" is a poetry collection written by an anonymous poet using the pen name "Faraway." This poet has gathered a big following on Instagram over the past year or so specifically on their Instagram: @/farawaypoetry. This collection touches on several topics, from mental health, to greiving a relationship, to parent issues and more. This collection is divided into four sections: "sad bird sings," "the bad days," "autumn evenings," and "unfinished business."
I read this book in a few hours, and for me, this collection was okay. Deep feelings of sadness and longing, hurt and exhaustion can be felt throughout the poems consistently in this collection, and although dozens of poems, at least a good amount of the book, is likely about a couple of relationships. The heavy and gloomy feelings that come along with topics such as depression, trying to let go of somebody you love, and attempting to find strength within yourself are depicted easily through the poems, while still managing to give off a bit of hope that there is an end to suffering, that there are better days to come as the reader goes through the book. The atmosphere the author brings to their work is in my opinion, the highlight of the collection.
The thing that I was missing from these poems was that there weren't really any specific details about the person or people the author writes about, making the poems come off as vague, and not quite sticking out from each other. The poems in each section did have a bit of distinction from poems in other sections, but not much, and I wondered as I was reading if the sections made in this collection were more for the author personally than for the reader. The topics of the poems themselves jumped back and forth within the sections, going from one or two poems being about mental illness to a few speaking of letting go of a past love, then a poem about a relationship with a parent, then back to talking about their past relationship, and it felt a little disorganized to me. As I said before, the atmosphere the author creates within their poems is strong, but these poems are about several different topics, and they all felt like they generally had the same about of sadness or heaviness or the same amount of lightness within the dark to them, making poems a little hard to stick out form one another.
The few bits of artwork that also divided up the contents of this collection were sketch-like and simple, pretty and imperfect, sticking with the overall bird theme the book has rather than customizing them to specific poems. Usually I personally like it when illustrations are specific to certain poems, but I felt that the few and simple illustrations worked well, tying in the bird theme throughout the book, since birds are only really mentioned in the written work at the beginning and the end of the collection.
Overall, the atmospheric tones brought to the writing of this book were the highlight of "Sad Birds Still Sing," but the poems themselves were a little too vague, and a little too similar to each other. They were entertaining and relatable, but could have had some personal details within the poems to add a little more to the work. This collection is out on October 15, 2019.
You can also read this review on my book blog: https://emmasbooksreviews.blogspot.co...
"Sad Birds Still Sing" is a poetry collection written by an anonymous poet using the pen name "Faraway." This poet has gathered a big following on Instagram over the past year or so specifically on their Instagram: @/farawaypoetry. This collection touches on several topics, from mental health, to greiving a relationship, to parent issues and more. This collection is divided into four sections: "sad bird sings," "the bad days," "autumn evenings," and "unfinished business."
I read this book in a few hours, and for me, this collection was okay. Deep feelings of sadness and longing, hurt and exhaustion can be felt throughout the poems consistently in this collection, and although dozens of poems, at least a good amount of the book, is likely about a couple of relationships. The heavy and gloomy feelings that come along with topics such as depression, trying to let go of somebody you love, and attempting to find strength within yourself are depicted easily through the poems, while still managing to give off a bit of hope that there is an end to suffering, that there are better days to come as the reader goes through the book. The atmosphere the author brings to their work is in my opinion, the highlight of the collection.
The thing that I was missing from these poems was that there weren't really any specific details about the person or people the author writes about, making the poems come off as vague, and not quite sticking out from each other. The poems in each section did have a bit of distinction from poems in other sections, but not much, and I wondered as I was reading if the sections made in this collection were more for the author personally than for the reader. The topics of the poems themselves jumped back and forth within the sections, going from one or two poems being about mental illness to a few speaking of letting go of a past love, then a poem about a relationship with a parent, then back to talking about their past relationship, and it felt a little disorganized to me. As I said before, the atmosphere the author creates within their poems is strong, but these poems are about several different topics, and they all felt like they generally had the same about of sadness or heaviness or the same amount of lightness within the dark to them, making poems a little hard to stick out form one another.
The few bits of artwork that also divided up the contents of this collection were sketch-like and simple, pretty and imperfect, sticking with the overall bird theme the book has rather than customizing them to specific poems. Usually I personally like it when illustrations are specific to certain poems, but I felt that the few and simple illustrations worked well, tying in the bird theme throughout the book, since birds are only really mentioned in the written work at the beginning and the end of the collection.
Overall, the atmospheric tones brought to the writing of this book were the highlight of "Sad Birds Still Sing," but the poems themselves were a little too vague, and a little too similar to each other. They were entertaining and relatable, but could have had some personal details within the poems to add a little more to the work. This collection is out on October 15, 2019.
You can also read this review on my book blog: https://emmasbooksreviews.blogspot.co...
November 11, 2019
The Sad Bird Still Sings is a lovely poetry collection. As someone who also has lived with mental illness I found myself represented in many poems. The writing is sincere and doesn’t pull any punches. I was emotional reading it and it’s a collection I know I’ll read it for years to come. If you have the time to read this one I highly recommend giving it a chance.
Review copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
Review copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
March 16, 2021
First I would like to thank Netgalley and Central Avenue Publishing for providing an e-ARC of this collection to me. That being said all thoughts and opinions are my own.
I enjoyed Sad Birds Still Sing overall, however, I found it to be a collection that was a little superficial. This isn't a poetry collection that I am going to be praising and quoting ten years from now unfortunately. Part of it was the poetry style. I usually like to have a little more "meat" to my poetry and most of these were quite short. The biggest factor by far though has to be the formatting of the Kindle version. It needs help. I understand that ARCs sometimes don't have the most perfect formatting, but the way it was laid out here was distracting and had me wondering where poems ended and began at first. I wasn't familiar with this authors style before this collection so I was wondering if it was all one big run on poem or not at first. However, once I got familiar with the formatting I enjoyed it quite a bit more. It's a quick read, with a few poems that really hit hard.
The collection discusses relationships, depression, and to an extent fate. One of my favorite passages was:
If the stars
are not aligned, I've always found it best to tug
them into place.
- why wait?
However, I think the better poems of the collection are the ones that discuss depression and how we as humans deal with it.
Emotional numbness
is not a cure for unhappiness; sedation is not
peace
for those who panic.
We are a different type, we who've lost our way:
our brains are not broken; it is our souls that
need renovation.
- broken souls and broken systems
If you like quick poems, you'll probably like this collection. I would say pick up a hard copy though if you can.
I enjoyed Sad Birds Still Sing overall, however, I found it to be a collection that was a little superficial. This isn't a poetry collection that I am going to be praising and quoting ten years from now unfortunately. Part of it was the poetry style. I usually like to have a little more "meat" to my poetry and most of these were quite short. The biggest factor by far though has to be the formatting of the Kindle version. It needs help. I understand that ARCs sometimes don't have the most perfect formatting, but the way it was laid out here was distracting and had me wondering where poems ended and began at first. I wasn't familiar with this authors style before this collection so I was wondering if it was all one big run on poem or not at first. However, once I got familiar with the formatting I enjoyed it quite a bit more. It's a quick read, with a few poems that really hit hard.
The collection discusses relationships, depression, and to an extent fate. One of my favorite passages was:
If the stars
are not aligned, I've always found it best to tug
them into place.
- why wait?
However, I think the better poems of the collection are the ones that discuss depression and how we as humans deal with it.
Emotional numbness
is not a cure for unhappiness; sedation is not
peace
for those who panic.
We are a different type, we who've lost our way:
our brains are not broken; it is our souls that
need renovation.
- broken souls and broken systems
If you like quick poems, you'll probably like this collection. I would say pick up a hard copy though if you can.
September 30, 2018
3.7/5 Beautiful title, beautiful poems. I cried.
Favs:
If only we had met
later in life. Maybe then,
now, we would have been
mature enough for feelings
as deep and real
as ours were.
I don’t regret
a single moment
spent believing you
were right for me.
There are worlds inside of me
that I have yet to discover.
Every morning,
I wake up next to the fact
that you fell asleep with
someone else
last night.
When you look back on us,
I hope you don’t only see
the parts that hurt.
Do you still fall apart
when you think of me, too?
- tell me you do
“I hope you find
someone you deserve.”
How painful
kind words can be,
when spoken from
the wrong person.
- you used to be
that someone.
You somehow
always had a way
of making me feel
okay with myself.
I’m learning now
how to do that
on my own.
Be cautious with your company:
live with demons long enough,
and you start to become one.
This story
is getting old;
I want to skip
a few chapters,
to a page on which
I am happy
again.
I'll smile when I want to;
I'll break when I need to.
Favs:
If only we had met
later in life. Maybe then,
now, we would have been
mature enough for feelings
as deep and real
as ours were.
I don’t regret
a single moment
spent believing you
were right for me.
There are worlds inside of me
that I have yet to discover.
Every morning,
I wake up next to the fact
that you fell asleep with
someone else
last night.
When you look back on us,
I hope you don’t only see
the parts that hurt.
Do you still fall apart
when you think of me, too?
- tell me you do
“I hope you find
someone you deserve.”
How painful
kind words can be,
when spoken from
the wrong person.
- you used to be
that someone.
You somehow
always had a way
of making me feel
okay with myself.
I’m learning now
how to do that
on my own.
Be cautious with your company:
live with demons long enough,
and you start to become one.
This story
is getting old;
I want to skip
a few chapters,
to a page on which
I am happy
again.
I'll smile when I want to;
I'll break when I need to.
August 11, 2021
This poetry collection is really moving. It made me tear up, which doesn't happen with me and poetry. The emotions are just so sincere in it. They come through clearly on the page without being saccharine or cheesy. This has the appeal of Amanda Lovelace but is a bit more introspective and thoughtful (and I love Lovelace). It talks about love and how even if things don't work out with a certain person, you can still treasure those memories while looking forward to when you DO meet the person who's right for you. Geez, it made me emotional, and I'm grateful I had the chance to read it. If you read one poetry book this year, make it this one.
*Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.*
*Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.*
June 23, 2018
3.5 stars. It is beautiful and tender. But slightly messy. As in, the collection is made up of four parts with four different headlines/themes. I didn’t, however, feel much distinction between the parts. They all just flowed into each other in a rather unorganised way. It messed up the reading journey a little, I think. But there are some rather lovely poems in this collection.
November 26, 2018
This poetry collection was just kind of "okay' to me. Some pieces were great and others not as much. My main problem is that it mostly seems like more of the same, just worded a little different. I guess I've read too much poetry. 🤷🏻♀️
March 20, 2020
Beautiful story written from the heart. The writing was easy to understand and the writer transformed me into her world. I could feel the sadness as well as heartbreak and hope on every page.
Everyone should care about this story. I can not recommend this book anymore!
Everyone should care about this story. I can not recommend this book anymore!
December 21, 2024
Poems that are a good versions of the tacky birthday card your odd relative always got you. The fact that Faraway made them enjoyable is testament to their skill.
Great collection, lovely words and a clear sentiment of relatableness that shines through.
Great collection, lovely words and a clear sentiment of relatableness that shines through.
January 12, 2018
1.5 stars
Didn't connect with these poems at all. I don't know why but I wasn't feeling anything while reading. Unfortunately that was nothing for me..
Didn't connect with these poems at all. I don't know why but I wasn't feeling anything while reading. Unfortunately that was nothing for me..
August 22, 2019
I really do have a thing for short, « Instagram sized”, spilled thoughts and this is just great. Pertinent thoughts on loss and love, going on and self love. Great great read!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 153 reviews