Healing My Inner Child by Aelene Frank

This poetry collection explores the experience we can have growing up feeling we don't fit in or how it feels to exist in a toxic household when you feel you don't fit in to and struggles to feel you are good enough or deserving enough. The Family Photo, especially about faking being happy in photos hiding behind a smile to not let others see the pain you feel. The collection of poetry explores feelings of being unwanted or unaccepted as a child by growing up and growing through the pain showing how years of reflection can provide casting clarity how enjoying your own company, passions, desires and being your own best friend in life is so important when you lack some key aspects growing up in a life where people can really treat you unkindly. Raw, emotional and brutally honest, it will make you appreciate the good you have and cherish it even more so.

Shattered Pieces Of You by Nariah Fernandez

This is a great soul deep collection of poetry from a relationship which was tumultuous and heartbreaking in two ways to finding new love and doubting that from past feelings of mistrust too. Dear Love, was my favourite poem about doubting feeling you are in love and again from past experiences comparing which many of us can relate to that feeling. It was a really deep feeling collection around love and losing yourself in all the feelings it brings, especially for being a shorter collection it was packed with emotion still.

Things That Should've Stayed In My Notes App by Stacey Nicole Douglas

This was a great collection about loving and caring for someone despite them making bad choices and believing themselves to be worthless. Notes unsent, that tell the questioning truths of why someone cut you out of their life, how it hurt and they seem unaffected on the surface level while to you it cut deeply from caring about them so much. Living up to the title completely, it was a deeply moving collection, feeling the care, pain, hurt and still an undertone of hope at times running through the collection.

After Hours by Nura Bloom

This was a heartbreaking poetic story of an affair, a pregnancy and a life forever altered. A story of few words per poem, but still impactful in telling the story of a life altered forever by actions and the ripple effects into others lives. It was beautifully laid out with simple black text on floral background and set into five separate parts of the story showing the before, during, after, the pain and accepting the effects of the choices made and the actions it led to.

Sad Poetry For The Dejected by M.M. Crusinberry

This was a really deep collection with many relatable points of how sadness can creep in whether in solo living moments to daily battling depression feeling the heavy greyness unmoving in daily life. A particular poem, No 3, about seeing yourself in the mirror and not feeling connected to yourself and the view of yourself. The struggle to connect feeling like an actor trying but struggling through the motions of daily life. It also contained poems about the feeling of family exhile, The Black Sheep, was a poem I really related to about not feeling you fit in whether with your family or friends and the feeling of being easily forgettable or leavable which can be sad or lead you to find new friends who understand you so much better in the future. Everything can work out, I will say the sadness can be consuming, so can depression but in time you can find clarity, hope and life can move on to allow better experiences and moments ahead, this was a great collection to show the struggles sadness can have cause and effect in life.

Letters The Wind Never Carried by A Poet Who Never Stopped Dreaming

This was a wonderful book detailing how unsent letters written but never dispatched can be a way of accepting, processing and finding sometimes closure in clearing your mind and process your emotions. It makes you realise the beauty in writing and letters, the power they hold to connect us in a simple act that can ultimately say so much wether they get sent or not to the person they are inspired by or because of. I hope it's ok to include a quote from the book but feel most of us will heavily relate to this: 'forgive us for learning to measure affection by the speed of a reply.' I think especially in modern times now, how presence shows care more than a quickly typed message the effort of taking action meaning more knowing that person is there for you quite literally. A wonderful book to realise the joy writing can bring to clear out feelings and reach out to others if desired to.

Girl, Isolated by Trista Mateer

This collection of poems are written in the early time of COVID with themes of love, toxic love, longing and loneliness. I'm Sorry For Looking You Up Online, was sadly relatable about ex's and Small Ghost Plays Animal Crossing, too especially because in Covid I did play hours of it and designing the island I made as well! Making Peace, about grief, acceptance of it and moving on with it was deep feeling after any loss. This collection was such a great accumulation of feelings from the pandemic and all we went through separately yet united in grief and loss of people and life as we knew.

I Named The Moon After You by Luke Moon

This was a beautiful poetry book detailing how someone's presence can bring light and a glow into your life. How in the joy of growing closer and falling, your guard drops and little moments of sharing touch or looks can feel magical in being someone's chosen special person in time. Evolving into every day little actions and attention to details, a truly beautiful poetry collection capturing the alluring emotions of love.

Letter To My Ex by JE Roberts

This collection was literally as the title said and speaks directly from the author to her ex and details all the emotions in the aftermath of a break up of a relationship spanning a decade. Some powerful poems of this collection to me were: Happiness You Deserve, is a poem many of us can relate to about an ex moving on. Sitting In This Room, feeling the gap between you and your love building rather than feeling closer together. About Him, the way love can become feeling like acting or speaking toxic from hurt and the way they can leave so easily. Choose, about chosing your kid over an uncommiting man, for the sake of the stability and love your child needs more than a man. A powerful collection about how being alone and putting your children first can be empowering facing someone unwilling to commit and accept all the parts of your life like you did for them.

Bullycide by Rachel Louise Finn

This poetry collection focuses on the subject of bullying and suicide hence the title. The collection tells many devastating stories of lives lost due to suicide and how bullying as a child can affect you for you whole life. I personally felt compelled to read this and related hard to a lot of the poems and emotions felt really hit with me after being bullied growing up, it's tough how it echoes through your life and trusting others still doesn't come easy, I know for me too I had suicidal thoughts and often saw no escape from it, teachers unwilling to help or knowing what to do to stop it. The poems honour the young children who lost their lives in various ways as well as those of us coping with scars years on. A really sad but necessary read that schools should use to educate how bullying can lead to such tragedy.