Selftitled

by Nicole Morning

The stories and poems in Selftitled -as honest and charmingly chaotic as a deathbed confession-explore an America of tinder dates, mysterious scars, unflattering selfies, motherhood, and drugs. Things can be hard here, but self-pity will only distract from life's splendor. In Morning's work, the stars themselves toss beckoning pebbles at the bedroom window.

108 pages, Paperback

Published May 27, 2021

Reviews

[Jessie McMains · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicole Morning’s Selftitled takes the reader on a tour of her life and loves, in a way that makes you feel like you’re right there with her. The poems and stories in this book deal with loss, online dating, non-monogamy, motherhood, sex, protests and pandemics, and they’ll have you laughing at the absurdity of life one moment and reeling from its brutality the next. If you’ve ever loved your children so fiercely you’d do anything for them, but also know what it’s like to feel overwhelmed by how much they need you, if you’ve ever told a lover you’re going to put them in a story, if you’ve ever had that problem where you’re attracted to danger, if you’ve ever done drugs, if you’ve never been sure whether you crave sweetness or violence more, if you’ve ever thought: “I wonder will they fire me for saying / fuck the police / Like I was dismissed for saying / I’m already in love”—you need to read this book.

[Franco Romero · Rating 5 out of 5]

this collection feels totally free of conventional nonfiction, poetry, autofiction or any other genre it could be associated with. the pieces within blend into each other because of the singular, truthful voice that carries them. I loved dipping in and out of the author's life, seeing moments and what they mean to her. I heard someone say recently that if any person tells the truth about their life, it's compelling; too few people do this in contemporary literature I think. it's a joy to encounter writing that goes there.

[Jessica Wadleigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Selftitled by Nicole Morning. There’s two sides of everything in Selftitled by Nicole Morning. Self-love and self-hate. Selflessness and selfishness. Compassion and vengeance. I finished this book months ago, but I’ve carried it around in my purse and have read stories and poems from it many times since then. In different times and in different contexts, there’s always something new to discover in Morning’s lines. One - “the classic emptiness and longing of the aging unmated woman, but now at the end of the world” - felt different in April when I was grappling with my mortality than it did the day before my 37th birthday when I was grappling with my loneliness. This is a raw and poignant collection of work that feels unrestricted and pure. Morning pulls no punches and isn’t afraid to show her best and worst selves. What makes it magic is the gift she possesses - being able to show both in the same line or stanza. Very recommended.

[C.E. Hoffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

"then i got drunk or read to him or cried us both to sleep
and that’s how the first half of my twenties went, mostly."

A magnificent piece exploring motherhood, womanhood, and all the terror and triumph therein.

[tay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes! Her writing is exquisite. So raw, with a bite-- yet captures the humanness, the mundaneness of life & longing for connection. Def my vibe. Def would recommend.

[Bart Schaneman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Raw. Vulnerable. Not very many of us can write with this amount of openness and truth. So much more memorable than most of what you read.

[Joseph Lamperez · Rating 5 out of 5]

She’s the most talented writer I’ve ever had sex with

[Haylee Feist · Rating 5 out of 5]

she just like me fr