4 out of 4 stars
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Of Illusions and Ink Spills is a collection of seventy-two free verse poetry composed by Divya Hirani. Drawn from nature, current issues, and the author's personal experiences, the poems cover numerous themes such as abuse of the youth by those in authority, identity theft, self-image, break-ups in relationships, bad governance, and maternal love, among others. All these have been presented in both thought-provoking and enthralling ways.
Even though this is a collection of free form verse poetry, the author artistically employed the use of sound patterns. Rhymes, alliteration, and consonance were beautifully employed. An example of a rhyme scheme can be seen in these two lines of the first poem in the book, "Secret Longing": A meaningful existence//With a magnified essence. However, other aspects of free verse poetry remained freestyle.
I liked how well Of Illusions and Ink Spills was written and executed. The author exquisitely applied various stylistic devices such as rhyme, alliteration, and consonance. Her word choice was also witty, and most of the ideas were riveting. Besides, I was fascinated by the fact that the poems were of varying lengths. Most of the poems are short and others are ever shorter, to the extent of having only four lines. Even with the short ones, the ideas are still complete and thoughtfully done. Others are also so open that readers can come up with their own interpretations. After all, which poetry lover does not appreciate poems that allow them to come up with their own interpretations!
Furthermore, I liked some of the advice given to poets by the writer. Two poems reflected on the poetry style of the author: "Wordsmith's Woes" and "Title of Poem." I'm glad that she also adhered to the rules of simplicity in writing poems and, as a fan of free verse poetry, I enjoyed the author's work. I think other poets, especially free verse poets, would find the information and advice not only useful, but also an encouragement to continue with their work.
What I liked the most about this collection of poems was the use of easy-to-understand language. I was able to read and understand most of the poems in one reading. The understanding part sorted, the only thing that remained for me was to ponder over the author's message and analyze how they apply to me. I, indeed, found them to be deep, thought-provoking, and inspiring. Therefore, I plan to be rereading this collection for intellectual appeal and as a source of inspiration.
All in all, I didn't find anything to dislike about this book. It seems to have been professionally edited since I found neither grammatical nor typographical errors. I'm, therefore, glad to award Of Illusions and Ink Spills by Divya Hirani 4 out of 4 stars. I really liked both the author's writing style and the diverse pertinent issues she addressed through this collection. I highly recommend it to youths, poets, and fans of free verse poetry in general. On the other hand, I can't find anyone to caution against picking this except for readers who are not into poetry.
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Of Illusions and Ink Spills
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