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Sweet Oleander: A Collection of Poetry
Oleander seeds and leaves are used to make medicine. They help with heart conditions, asthma, and other health issues. They can also be deadly to ingest. 'Sweet Oleander' is the first collection of poetry by Chanel. with ballads, haiku's and sonnets and more about love, sex, death, and all of life's intricate experiences.
61 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 1, 2020
About the author
Chanel Hardy
22 books20 followersYA/NA author and poet born and raised in the Washington D.C. area. In 2017 Chanel decided to take a leap of faith and follow her dreams of publishing her first book, 'My Colorblind Rainbow' which made the 'In The Margins Award Long List' for YA fiction in 2018. She launched Hardy Publications in September of 2017, working as a freelance writer and literary blogger. She's written for publications such as Women and Words, 25 Hottest Indie Authors Artists Advocates 2020, and CulEpi.
With certifications in persuasive writing and public speaking, TEFL(Teaching English as a Foreign Language) while overseas, Chanel uses her platform to raise awareness for different charities and non-profit organizations, volunteering both locally and internationally, and giving back to the community.
With certifications in persuasive writing and public speaking, TEFL(Teaching English as a Foreign Language) while overseas, Chanel uses her platform to raise awareness for different charities and non-profit organizations, volunteering both locally and internationally, and giving back to the community.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 3, 2020
4.5 stars
First, can we just gush about this cover for a minute? Because holy shit, it's gorgeous. And honestly, it captures the heart and soul of the poems within.
This was an excellent collection of poems. I'm pretty touch and go with poetry books, but this has to be a favourite. There were short entries and long ones; some named and some not. But I'll do my best to list my favourites:
My Truth: Short and sweet, with a lyrical feel to it.
A War Poem: I remember seeing this one in a snippet Ms. Hardy shared some time ago, and I was struck as much now as I was then by how impactful it was. It isn't long, yet it gets the message across beautifully.
Love Reincarnated: Simply beautiful and bittersweet--my favourite kind.
Sweet Oleander: Short and sweet; you can practically smell the summer flowers.
Linger: Relatable. Anyone who's been through heartache of any kind knows how devastating the smell of someone you loved can be. This took me back to some hard times, but it was comforting too.
Messages: I can't put my finger on it; I just really liked this one.
Land Unsung: This one sounds like a sweet promise to a lover.
Honey: This one was both tantalizing and bittersweet. I particularly liked the point of it; the disappointment in realizing someone you liked, maybe even loved once, didn't live up to the image you had in your head. That in the end, they're not what you really want or need and you wish you could still see them the way you once did.
Closeted: Short as it is, it touched me on a profound level. To me, there's a duality to it--not that one is necessarily disappointed in who they're with, but in their own lack of experience before finding that love. However it was meant, I've a feeling many will find nuggets of their own experiences in the words.
The collection was wonderful on the whole with a lot of raw emotion in some parts, and beautiful, winding lyrical words in others.
If you like poetry, I encourage you to give Sweet Oleander a read.
First, can we just gush about this cover for a minute? Because holy shit, it's gorgeous. And honestly, it captures the heart and soul of the poems within.
This was an excellent collection of poems. I'm pretty touch and go with poetry books, but this has to be a favourite. There were short entries and long ones; some named and some not. But I'll do my best to list my favourites:
My Truth: Short and sweet, with a lyrical feel to it.
A War Poem: I remember seeing this one in a snippet Ms. Hardy shared some time ago, and I was struck as much now as I was then by how impactful it was. It isn't long, yet it gets the message across beautifully.
Love Reincarnated: Simply beautiful and bittersweet--my favourite kind.
Sweet Oleander: Short and sweet; you can practically smell the summer flowers.
Linger: Relatable. Anyone who's been through heartache of any kind knows how devastating the smell of someone you loved can be. This took me back to some hard times, but it was comforting too.
Messages: I can't put my finger on it; I just really liked this one.
Land Unsung: This one sounds like a sweet promise to a lover.
Honey: This one was both tantalizing and bittersweet. I particularly liked the point of it; the disappointment in realizing someone you liked, maybe even loved once, didn't live up to the image you had in your head. That in the end, they're not what you really want or need and you wish you could still see them the way you once did.
Closeted: Short as it is, it touched me on a profound level. To me, there's a duality to it--not that one is necessarily disappointed in who they're with, but in their own lack of experience before finding that love. However it was meant, I've a feeling many will find nuggets of their own experiences in the words.
The collection was wonderful on the whole with a lot of raw emotion in some parts, and beautiful, winding lyrical words in others.
If you like poetry, I encourage you to give Sweet Oleander a read.
June 24, 2020
Loved it! Thoughtful, at times funny, persistently breath-taking, I loved every poem I came across. My favorite would have to be “the other side” which begins with, in my opinion, the best opening lines in poetry: “I thought the grass was greener on the other side/ turns out it was sand/ getting stuck in places it shouldn’t”
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews