Sarah Kay (1)Besprekingen

Some poems I thought were okay, but then others punched me in the gut. Read my full review here.

Passionate and so so gentle. Lovely illustrations too! thankful @Angela ☺️

She's quite young, so there's some disconnect for me. I liked Dragons, and Hand-Me-Downs the best, but admired pats of several others. I'd certainly read more if she continues to write.

B is simply one of the most beautiful poetry books I have ever read...

I just spent a beautiful moment in time with this gem. Loved it. 💛⭐️

Sarah Kay is so vulnerably open in this book of hers. And I love it. This is a collection of the truths she's gathered so far in her life, all written with the kind of genius and passion for words Kay possesses. :)

I bought this book when Proj VOICE came to UP Diliman, and I had it autographed by Sarah Kay as well. It was such a great privilege, watching my favorite poets perform live. It was probably one of the best nights of my life.



"B" is uncontestedly the poem I love best, ever since I first watched a YouTube video of Kay delivering it for her TED Talk in 2011. My other favorites would be Ghost Ship, Hand-me-downs, Private Parts, and The Type. (But seriously, though, everything was written beautifully.)

No matter your wreckage.
There will be someone to find you beautiful,
despite the cruddy metal. Your ruin is not to be hidden
behind paint and canvas. Let them see the cracks.
Someone will come to sing into these empty spaces.

What can be said about Sarah Kay and her poetry that hasn't been said before? Each piece she publishes is a must-have. The Type is no different.

Unlike B, I wasn't aware of the viral sensation that The Type was before it was published in book form. With B I had watched and listened to Kay read it numerous times before taking in the poem in text form. I got a chance to try experiencing this poet the other way around for The Type and I'm glad I had that chance.

I enjoyed this poem and its message. Like most of Kay's work, there's a strong message. There's honesty. There's humanity in the message and strong emotion. I read through it, and followed it up with watching a video of Kay reading it. Then I read through it again. Each time I enjoyed it more. It might not be very long, but it's worth taking the time to absorb slowly and often.

There are few poems that I feel could stand alone as their own "book" like this one. While the illustrations do also help with the experience, Kay's words makes it all worth it most of all.

Sarah Kay was already one of my favorite contemporary poets before reading this book. Having read it, she's solidified herself on that list and might be on top of it, now.

I can't put it all into words, but for anyone who's read or listened to any of her work, you know what to expect in this collection. Kay doesn't disappoint.

A spoken-word poem put to writing with illustrations by Sophia Janowitz. I liked when I heard this as a Ted Talk and think Janowitz's illustrations are beautiful. This is sort of kid's book like but probably a good gift for parents-to-be. If they happen to be women and having a daughter.

The poems of Sarah Kay always give me feelings. Something like home. Familiarity, maybe. Or nostalgia. There is no spoken word poetry of Sarah Kay that I did not like. There will never be. So to appreciate this collection of poems, I listened to her through her videos online. What about those poems without her videos? I read it out loud. I'm not a good poetry speaker but to hell with it! I made the bed my stage and the pillows in my room became my audience. In those moments, there was a bubble of magic that was impenetrable.

I have watched Sarah Kay's spoken word poetry live when she and Phil Kaye performed in the Philippines. She is one of the inspiring poets I met. Her poems are exquisite yet simple, so it's relatable while deeply felt.

"B" was performed at the TED 2011 Conference. In this platform of written texts, the words are to be felt just the same. The words are emphasized through breaking off the lines and the subtle illustrations of Sophia Janowitz. What I like about the poem is that it is not trying to please its readers, it simply does. The emotions are visible as it is real.

most incredible introduction to the world of poetry. simultaneously contemporary and timeless.

I know that I'm in the minority here, but I truly prefer the book form of the poem than the performance; I like the words of Sarah Kay, but not the way she says them. Which is an irony because this is supposed to be an "spoken word poem". Either way, B is beautiful and (like every great poem) timeless ode to motherhood.

Can you adopt me, Sarah Kay?

There are a number of things I liked about this poem, and I might have given it a 4 had I not then gone to hear the author perform it online. Her delivery was harsh, and ruined it for me.

Surprisingly moving

Surprisingly moving

Surprisingly moving

Surprisingly moving

Sarah Kay is my favorite female poet. She does spoken word poetry as well, which you can google to watch her performances. I fell in love when I heard her perform Point B on a TED talk. I have since found every video and book. Her poetry feels raw and real, like she just got out of bed and put her pajamas into words. I like being able to picture her performing her poetry, it adds to the experience.

I first heard this poem performed quite awhile ago. I was just starting to listen to spoken word poetry through the IndieFeed: Performance Poetry podcast, and from that I was searching youtube for various poets and videos. I came across Sarah Kay and fell in love with what I heard.

The performance I listened to was from the TED conference, referenced in the description. It became one of my favorite poems to listen to. This is why I was happy to find out that the poem was available in print. I hadn’t read a spoken word poem before. I didn’t know what to expect. Would the emotions, the power, or the essence Sarah Kay brought to this poem through speaking it out translate to the page and move me? Well it did.

I’m one to enjoy seeing words on a page. I like to see how they are placed on that page; how the poet wishes his or her words to be visualized on the page. For B, there may not be many lines and there may not be many words, but B holds the beauty Kay’s performance in how it’s presented. There are illustrations to go along with the text and I think that makes the experience that much better.

The reader is able to slowly soak in the poem over roughly 50 pages, when a less creative and resourceful poet may only have used 2 or 3 pages for a poem the same length. At first I had at hard time justifying paying for one poem that I knew only takes the poet a few minutes to read, but I’m glad I didn’t let that stop me from trying it out.

I’m happy to have B and Sarah Kay on my shelf. This has become one of my favorite books of poetry. I’m happy to have it in my collection.