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Wearing My Mother's Heart

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From acclaimed performance poet Sophia Thakur comes a powerful new collection of poems about what it means to be a woman, intergenerational relationships, finding your voice and learning to speak out.

To my children I will say
Let the river break between your lips...

In her lyrical and heartfelt second poetry collection, Sophia Thakur takes us on an emotionally charged journey through the past lives of women and considers what it means to be a woman in today's society. Exploring topics such as identity, race, politics, relationships, mental health and self-love, she weaves together the voices of a grandmother, mother and daughter, and examines how past generations have given us the freedom to speak out. Encompassing love, from first crush to break-up, the history that comes before us, and the brave moments that make us, this collection will resonate with all young women as they approach the joys and pain of adulthood and learn to navigate life

107 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 3, 2022

22 people are currently reading
463 people want to read

About the author

Sophia Thakur

7 books57 followers
Sophia Thakur has been performing since the age of sixteen and has a wide reach across social media. She has presented two TED Talks and has worked closely with young people, sharing her poems and the creative process. This is her first published collection. She lives in Middlesex, England.

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5 stars
128 (25%)
4 stars
234 (46%)
3 stars
121 (24%)
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15 (3%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
Profile Image for Mai H..
1,354 reviews798 followers
August 27, 2024
Black History Month

Women and minorities have things hard enough. To throw in being mixed-race on top of that? Especially when you look more like one race than the other? I imagine it becomes a difficult and draining task to constantly explain yourself to others, if you even care to. And you don't have to. They're not owed that.

Poetry is often hard for me to connect with, but I find it's made easier when I relate to some of the topics discussed, e.g. identity, race, politics, relationships, mental health, self-love. I'm actively working on the last three, but I feel like I've come far in the first three. Time will tell.

I started this one a couple of times. I listened on audio, and while I always appreciate being read to in the author's native accent, sometimes I find it hard to focus. I got through the entire thing this morning, and found that I greatly enjoyed myself. I connected a lot to the poems. There is just something special about finding some deep understanding within yourself after consuming another's work.

🎧 Thank you to NetGalley and Tantor Audio
Profile Image for Shannon.
8,314 reviews424 followers
October 9, 2023
A beautifully lyrical collection of poems about family, identity and belonging by a new to me poet. I was attracted by the gorgeous cover and ended up impressed with the quality of these poems. Good on audio and highly recommended for fans of poets like Tayi Tibble. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
Profile Image for Shan Rich.
369 reviews9 followers
April 27, 2025
I love her writing style, so poetic. So nuanced. So powerful 🥹

I’ve been reading a lot about relationships between women of colour and their mothers, and sisterhood and how important it is to our entire existence.

Everything I’ve read by her is so inspiring and emotionally driven.
Profile Image for Marybeth Buskirk.
666 reviews31 followers
February 3, 2025
Actual Rating:
3.5

I definitely think this would be better physically read because I don’t know what happened during the audio production but the latter half of the book sounded like it had some tech problems and it sounded like sentences were getting clipped or like a CD was skipping and it definitely impacted my enjoyment of the story, but overall, it was a decent coming of age and telling a family history through spoken word which I did enjoy mostly!
Profile Image for Divya.
54 reviews2 followers
February 7, 2024
beautiful, moving, powerful poems
Profile Image for Charlotte.
53 reviews
March 27, 2023
girlie did what had to be done with these poems. The amount of pages that I’ve tagged is a joke but I just loved them so much 😫
Only thing for me that’s making this book a 4 instead of 5 ⭐️ is how short some of them were and I think they just came across as too abstract when the longer ones were so much better 🫶
Profile Image for Bookish Miranda.
307 reviews14 followers
November 20, 2023
I'm not a big poetry reader, but this was lovely. The love and admiration Thakur expresses for her family are beautiful.
Profile Image for s.tems.
67 reviews
February 21, 2025
I never know how to rate poetry, but I resonated with some of the pieces.
Profile Image for Onyeka.
322 reviews8 followers
December 20, 2023
I’m not a big poetry reader & didn’t like her first collection of poems, but found “Wearing my mother’s heart” much better. The poems are emotionally charged, culturally relevant & provocative. I especially liked the one challenging the racist statues still standing erect in UK.

Sophia Thakur has a way with words & this was a pleasure to read.
Profile Image for Lindsey.
1,184 reviews47 followers
October 4, 2023
An incredible collection of poetry, beautifully performed. I think ultimately I prefer to read poetry on the page so I can retrace my steps whereas this felt like it sped by quickly - in part perhaps because many of the poems or short and the break between poems wasn't always clear? With that said though, the poems were incredible - reflecting on generational trauma, family and parenthood, love and change, racism and immigration, and other resonant themes.
Profile Image for Jessica.
662 reviews
September 30, 2023
So many good poems about life. I’m not a poetry gal but I love a poetry collection that is intensely meaningful. She talks a lot about what her family has gone through. I loved getting the generational wisdom that had been passed down.

[[4]]
Profile Image for Megan Mayes18.
25 reviews3 followers
December 6, 2022
I really enjoyed the poem dedicated to Grenfell Tower and the ones highlighting men’s mental health.
Profile Image for Lara.
1,223 reviews4 followers
March 2, 2024
"My grandmothers on both sides were powerless against the pull of their hearts and chose love over tradition, boldly and publicly falling in love with men outside of their religion ... love should always come first ... My parents are fruit of a new seed planted in our family tree. They were born from the audacity of love."

Profile Image for Jordan.
46 reviews
February 11, 2024
Poems I particularly liked: Heartbreak's continuum, Guncotton, Observe, Attempt - Grandma, Temporary Elation, Trifling
Profile Image for Julia Nash.
381 reviews24 followers
February 7, 2024
Great poetry, a bit more talk of God than I'm comfy with.
Profile Image for Elysephone.
112 reviews4 followers
October 12, 2025
Like most collections, not every one can be a banger. There are some gems in this collection, but I think it takes sifting through a large net of oysters before coming across the one or two pearls. The ones that shine are the ones that do feel like they had more time and perhaps more workshopping or redrafting, whereas others feel more lukewarm page fillers or surface level tributes to mainstream thoughts/words.
Still, a nice collection I would recommend to someone if they asked. I would try her other collection "Someone Give This Heart A Pen" which I can imagine might have more to it if there isn't the confines of sticking to a theme. To be seen, I suppose.
60 reviews
Read
February 19, 2024
Don’t know how to rate poetry but this collection felt hopeful and compassionate but I felt it also treated serious topics with appropriate gravity.
Profile Image for Cat Strawberry.
838 reviews22 followers
December 27, 2024
This is an interesting poetry collection from spoken word poet Sophie Thakur. It’s a lovely set of poems, many told about family and in particularly celebrating mothers and grandmothers. The book begins with a brief introduction to the book by the author, explaining something interesting about her family’s history and what inspired this poetry collection, before then having a few sort of chapters, with poems separated into what feels like sections based on what the poems are about.

I have to say that I always love reading poetry and also trying to find the deeper meaning in poems too, and many of these poems are really good and very powerful to read. Several poems at the start of the book really sat with me, especially poems about a baby growing inside a mother and the poems about the way many immigrants were treated when first coming to the country. These poems delve into a lot of deep topics, not just about a mother or grandmothers love but also about the way it felt for immigrants living here, the racism and traditional views of the time, and of now too. I have to say that I really liked some of these very powerful poems about race and motherhood, and they made for interesting reading.

A few poems have some rhyming in them, but most do not follow a particular rhyming pattern and many of the poems I have to admit I found a little harder to read. There is one poem that sounds so powerful, but I actually didn’t get what it was about until an author note pointed it out, however on a second reading I can see how this poem is a powerful look at a particular event that happened in our recent history. Each poem appears on a separate page, with the beginnings of the different sections being given a lovely pattern which I’ve shown in a picture, and an additional short poem on that page too. The cover is this book is absolutely beautiful, with the same shell-like pattern repeated throughout, and you will notice something when you look at the back of the book, it’s a clever and beautifully designed cover and book.

Overall I have mixed feeling about this book. Some of the poems really resonated with me while others not so much. I can’t relate to some of them directly but I felt the powerful messages, in particular with the poems about a mother’s love for her child, even if unborn, as well as the poems focused on romantic love and racism. The variety of poetry is good, although all connected really to that love for a child, family, etc. and there are also a lot of mentions of God in a positive way too which I didn’t mind. It is an interesting collection of poetry with many good and powerful ones, however, I did find some of them harder to grasp and I wonder if some readers might too. Spoken word poetry isn’t something I’m used to, and I wonder if this collection would be more enjoyable in a performance rather than read on the page, and some of the poems felt almost too complex for me to get every meaning, and some just didn’t resonate that much even when I did. I do think this book will be enjoyed with those that enjoy Thakur’s work already as well as those who enjoy poems about family, in particular mothers and grandmothers, especially those who have had to deal with being immigrants and facing problems of race, though the love and bond of that love is at the core of the poems in this book.
-Thanks to Walker Books for a free copy.
173 reviews
January 28, 2025
I couldn't find anything particularly unique or special here. Nothing was awful, but nothing was interesting.

The topics of love and family are trotted out in simple lines that may as well have been prose. Nothing unique is said about the bonds of womanhood, coming from a different culture, love marriages, or what motherhood entails.The only pieces I found compelling were the ones written from the perspective of 'Grandma', whose prose uses the same metaphors of the female body being the sea/country that the other poems do. I think the prose was more successful at conveying complex ideas/ storyline than the poetry, with one or two exceptions. My favourite exception is 'Patriotic to the past' which I also feel is a little messy. It feels like it attempts capture a lot of heavy feelings, and ends up only touching on them.

Unfortunately, when it comes to love poetry, there's so much of it in the world that you need to do something distinct with your phrasing/tone/style etc for it to be memorable. This didn't quite manage anything I hadn't seen or heard before. I mean, 'Doing it broken is part of doing it' is something I read on tumblr ten years ago. It's not refreshing to see it published.

My favourite line was from 'Attempt - Grandma': "We dreamt of women like you living somewhere in the garden."
Profile Image for Becs.
1,584 reviews53 followers
December 1, 2022
I really enjoyed what the author accomplished here in terms of providing a voice to many. There's a section of the book, it may even be in the blurb, in which she champions the women before us; the women whose shoulders we now stand on, whose battles we benefit from, and who had little power but fought hard to let us have the power only men could dream of before us. It was beautiful, perhaps more beautiful than the poems actually, and I think she captured it really well in her prose.

There are many opening poems in this collection which speak of love - sometimes familial love but also romantic love. They feel more mature, but by no means graphic or offensive, than I think the intended audience would really appreciate - that's my only objection to the book really. Other than this, the collection is beautifully crafted; it is not necessarily compelling, but it is raw and cleverly put together.

If you enjoy poetry which is lyrical, perhaps even a little purple in its prose, and like looking for the meaning behind a complex verse then I think you will enjoy this short collection.

ARC provided from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for kim baccellia.
329 reviews15 followers
August 31, 2023
What worked: Beautifully written poetry collection that shows intergenerational family relationships through past and present. What I especially loved about this collection has to be the underlying theme of empowerment. Many different topics are explored which include identity, race, mental health, and self-love.

Some of my favorite poems:

Icarus Servicing Britain uses the symbolism of an eagle to show colonization.

When We Meet in Paris is a beautifully choreographed dance to meeting a first love

Spring in Ends is a tribute to Grenfell Tower tragedy.

Attempt-Grandma where a granddaughter listens to her uncle go on about a 'better' time and that women need to leave feminism aside and focus on home. Only she speaks up.

This collection of poetry is woven together to bring voices from the past and present today. I loved the shout-outs to Toni Morrison and the women who have come before, paving the way for their daughters. There's also mention of mental health and a shout-out to men.

A love letter to young readers on finding their voice. This collection of poetry is empowering for all.

Originally posted: https://www.yabookscentral.com/wearin...
Profile Image for Marie.
1,810 reviews16 followers
April 6, 2024
I had someone to face life with, and that felt like all I'd ever need to survive the hands of this world.

How is it possible that you have flooded my heart like this? Before you, the todays and tomorrows lacked nothing, the present was pleased, satisfied, whole, I thought.

A woman has always been what it means to live.

If you are going to see yourself through anyone's eyes let it be your mother's.

There is a lot that I miss but nothing as much as who I used to be before I was forced to be who I had to be.

I wish every part of me stayed new to you. Maybe this is why people leave, to go and be adored and seen for the first time again.

The end of love can feel like the end of everything.

I cannot believe that all you can ever be to me now is a memory. You do not fit into just a thought. You spill from my eyes some nights. My heart leaks through the floor.

Who tole the ending it wasn't forever? You are still alive to me.

You'll be alright. the sun may shatter, but it still shines.

You have reminded me how much of myself I find in the company of those who chose to love me time after time after time.



3,117 reviews6 followers
March 20, 2023
Wearing my Mother’s Heart is a collection of over 70 poems from spoken word poet Sophia Thakur. All are to do with being a woman and the relationships we have and life. Some are very short, just a couple of lines and some are over more than one page. They are also split into sections.

Now I think in my judgement of this book it is only fair to state that I’m not a massive reader of poetry. Whilst I adore some works from poets such as Edgar Allan Poe I rarely read modern-day poems so these were refreshing for me.

The poems whilst each had the underlined theme of being a woman, a lot of them were quite religious too and embraces faith in different areas of your life.

If you love poetry then Wearing My Mother’s Heart will be a book to pick up. The poems are meaningful, touching, and poignant. They stay with you long after you have read them. This is also a book you can dip in and out of when you so desire or when you need that pick-me-up or a reminder of how strong you truly are. I certainly enjoyed this lovely collection of poems from Sophia Thakur.
Profile Image for LOVEs_Reading♡.
123 reviews19 followers
March 6, 2025
💜 𝐀 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭-𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞! 💜

This book is a love letter to all women—those who walk among us today and those who came before us.
Sophia’s poetry is raw, powerful, and deeply reflective. She highlights the cultural chains that once bound women and the steps they took to break free—ensuring that the generations after them wouldn’t suffer the same fate.

But this collection isn’t just about the past; it’s a challenge to the present. Sophia pushes young people—men and women alike—to stand up for themselves, to think critically, and to question the roles and expectations placed upon them. She reminds us that we shouldn’t just accept what others impose on us—we have a voice, and we should use it.

One of the things I love most is that, while Sophia focuses on women’s experiences, she also acknowledges the struggles men face—especially the ones they rarely speak about. That kind of awareness and fairness makes her poetry even more powerful.
I love an unbiased QUEEN, and this collection solidifies Sophia as one.
Profile Image for lauren ruiz.
221 reviews17 followers
October 2, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC! In "Wearing My Mother's Heart", Sophia Thakur sews together a collection of poems that are altogether grievous, cerebral, and hopeful. While some poems touch on differing subjects that are both weighty and complex — from friendship to heartbreak to generational trauma — each poem is delicately crafted to impress intimacy without the suffocation of claustrophobia.

I especially loved the poem Guncotton, which begins with the line: "In India, the first film stock was made with the same compound found in explosives." Guncotton goes on to be a beautiful reconciliation between the form of art versus the effect it launches.

Honorable mentions to some highlighted lines from a few of my favorite poems:

• "You are function before you are female", It Was A Different Time

• "Remember me a mother to this country and his youths, because my sea will not forget what you did to their roots", Grandmother of the Land
Profile Image for Stephanie.
43 reviews3 followers
January 17, 2025
Wearing My Mother’s Heart is a deeply moving and thought-provoking collection of poetry that explores themes of family, identity, and heritage. As someone unfamiliar with reading poetry collections, I wasn’t sure how to approach it at first, but this book quickly drew me in with its emotional depth and relatable themes.

What stands out about this collection is how it weaves together the experiences of being Black British, an immigrant, and part of a multigenerational family. The poems delve into the complexities of cultural identity, the tensions between societal norms, and the differing perspectives across generations. As someone raised by a second-generation immigrant, I found these explorations incredibly authentic and resonant.

Some poems struck a particular chord with me, and I found myself highlighting them to revisit later. The way the author captured the nuances of family dynamics and the legacy of shared experiences was both powerful and beautifully crafted. These moments made the collection feel not only deeply personal but also universal, offering a mirror to the experiences of many readers while shedding light on others.

This is a collection that I’ll return to again and again—not just for its artistry, but for the insights and reflections it offers. It’s a must-read for anyone looking to explore themes of identity, belonging, and the intricate ties that bind families together.

Rating: ★★★★
Profile Image for Bookish Trina.
398 reviews46 followers
December 13, 2023
Wearing My Mother's Heart by Sophia Thakur is GORGEOUS! This poetry collection has beautiful prose and gorgeous writing. The flow.... the prose... holy cow! They are both hauntingly beautiful yet powerful and strong. This collection speed up my heart while reading it, I was moved in ways I did not expect. I usually annotate favorite quotes from books but this whole book is my favorite quote! BRAVO! BRAVO! BRAVO! Instant autobuy author and poet for me now.

I received a review copy of this book from the author/publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
Profile Image for Barbara.
15k reviews315 followers
October 29, 2023
Readers in search of poems about three generations of strong, resilient women will find much to appreciate in this volume. While I liked the concept for the book, I wasn't as inspired or as impressed as I expected to be. Perhaps they'd be more meaningful if I heard the poet recite them or knew more about what prompted them or could make sense of how they were organized or who was speaking. The importance of voice, of choice, of love, and of respect, all resonate through these lines for those who care to delve into them.
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