4 Poetry Books To Get You Out of a Funk
Books to help you find self-acceptance and self-love
This past week has just been one of those weeks. Nothing has necessarily gone wrong per se but nothing has really gone right either — you know the type of week.
Life has felt slow and mundane, leaving me with more time to ruminate about my life and experience a couple of extra existential crises per day (typical Tuesday for me really).
So, I decided to try something new this week to help get me out of this funk — read poetry.
Now, I recognize that's a pretty bold statement on a site with a lot of avid poetry readers, so I suppose I should clarify my statement — read more poetry.
I have always liked the idea of poetry, but if I am being honest the standard poetry I read in high school never really piqued my interest. However, this week I decided to try and give poetry another go. And I ended up reading 4 poetry books that even a novice poetry reader will enjoy.
Each book explores the rawness and vulnerabilities of life and might be especially helpful for those struggling with self-acceptance and searching for some self-love.
1. Self-Love Poetry: For Thinkers and Feelers by Melody Godfred
Melody Godfred, described as the "Self Love Philosopher", literally writes poetry within poetry — on the left side of each page of this book, she writes a poem appealing to left-brain thinkers (the reasonable, rational, logical parts of us), and on the right page she pairs a poem on the same topic meant to speak to the right-brain feelers (our intuition, creativity, imagination, creativity).
Each poem is described to work in tandem with one another to activate the whole brain and explores raw topics of the human experience, such as vulnerability, authenticity, empowerment, self-care, and self-love.
Left-brain thinkers
"Instead of loving people who withhold their love, I'm loving myself and holding space to receive love from someone who wants to give it to me."
Right-brain feelers
"I begged for your love. I bent for your love. I broke for your love. And all the while, all I did, was beg and bend and break."
Why you should read it
This was the first book I picked up and read this week. And when I say I instantly fell in love with this book, I am not exaggerating. Being a psychology nerd, I was captivated by how she seamlessly intertwined poetry that appeals to both our "left" and "right" brains. Each poem explores the struggles of finding self-acceptance and self-love in a way that is so relatable.
2. Inward by Yung Pueblo
Inward is a collection of poems, quotes, and prose. And is inspired by the idea of individual "liberation" and the power of self-love towards liberating ourselves. Divided into 5 chapters (distance, union, interlude, self-love, and understanding), each chapter explores the feelings we all face on the journey towards understanding and acceptance.
Distance
"Before I could release the weight of my sadness and pain, I first had to honor its existence."
Union
"Letting go doesn't mean forgetting; it means we stop carrying the energy of the past into the present."
Why you should read it
Once I picked up this book, I honestly could not stop reading it. If you are someone who thinks a lot about the past, this book is definitely for you. I don't know if it is this pandemic, being in my 20s, or just the way my life has gone these past few years, but I have been struggling a lot with thinking about my past and wanting to let go of some things. However, Pueblo acknowledges these negative feelings about the past, while also trying to move the reader towards a place of acceptance.
3. The Sun and Her Flowers by Rupi Kaur
Author of the bestselling book, Milk and Honey, Rupi Kaur paints the ups and downs of life through the lens of a flower's lifespan. The five chapters (wilting, falling, rooting, rising, and blooming) chronicles the poetic journey of nature's abilities to change even the most wilting flowers into something beautiful and blossoming.
Falling
"The irony of loneliness is we all feel it at the same time — together."
Why you should read it
Okay, I know the saying goes, "don't judge a book by its cover" but seriously the hardcover version of this book is absolutely beautiful. If you are the kind of person who prefers to buy copies of books and can splurge a little, the hardcover of this book has that old book feeling and even has a built-in bookmark (Might have even smelled this book; please don't judge me). To top it off, the author also includes sketches throughout the book drawn by themselves. But beyond its external beauty, this book is filled with such emotion-tugging poetry that will leave you feeling a sense of peace.
4. HER. by Pierre Alex Jeanty
Inspired by his own love life and friends constantly coming to him for advice, HER. is filled with short poems and prose addressed to "her" and is a must-read for women who may have lost faith in love. The author subsequently published the accompanying HER VOL. 2 given its popularity and HIM. to speak the struggles men also face in love.
"Perfect people are just good pretenders and exceptional liars. To ask her to be perfect is to ask her to be those things."
Why you should read it
The writing style of this book is highly relatable and every woman can probably relate to most, if not all, of these poems. This book really speaks to the emotions women often experience in dating, such as feelings of insecurity, the heartbreak of loving a man who does not value you, what healthy love should look like, and motivational reminders that so many women long to hear.
"Don't dare her to be different, she already is. Dare her to be herself."
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Source: https://baos.pub/4-of-the-best-poetry-books-to-get-you-out-of-a-funk-48d1d0c7e10e
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