Review of You, This Is Me...OVER?!
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Samyuktha Sharma
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- Latest Review: You, This Is Me...OVER?! by Clinton Beaudel Dooley
Review of You, This Is Me...OVER?!
[Following is a volunteer review of "You, This Is Me...OVER?!" by Clinton Beaudel Dooley.]
“You, This Is Me…OVER?” is a beautiful book that talks, sings, and recites to its readers the severity and impact of war on the fragile human mind. It is one of the most diverse books I've read, bordering on being a poetry collection cum autobiography cum self-help book. Yet somehow, this book reads more like a diary than a novel in an intimate way. The author presents us with his poetry while describing his experiences and also providing beautiful and effective ways of getting through life when you feel stuck. The illustrations in the book were a nice bonus.
I've watched and heard soldiers talk about their struggles, and yes, I've watched many movies and read many books about the struggles of war, but until I read this book, I never quite understood the struggles of being a warrior. Reading this book felt like I opened up a warrior's diary and watched as they slowly fell apart on paper, chronicling their journey with pain, loss, love, and disengagement from the world.
This is not your typical "my life during the war" kind of book that only veterans or soldiers can understand or relate to. This book is for anyone who wants to know or wishes to understand what war can do to the human mind. And along with that, there's poetry about love, strength, and many more topics that would never otherwise see the light of day. Further, there are honest descriptions of family and friends that I absolutely loved. Truly, like I said, this book is diverse and beautiful.
The way the author wrote about his love made me believe that perhaps true love does exist and my faith in such love was restored. 'My muse, my music' was so heart-touching, I cannot count the amount of times I smiled reading it. The arrangement of certain poetry into parts was done superbly. In some parts, in the midst of loss and pain, one can find odes of passionate love.
'Debt of blood upon our shoulders' felt like I was reading the lyrics of a war song with drums in the background while 'Hold on' painfully and soul-touchingly described the disastrous effects of war on the mind. Reading this book made me feel proud of our soldiers around the world who keep us safe by sacrificing themselves.
Even then, I gave this book only three stars out of five. It is far from perfect for a multitude of reasons. While the overall emotional value this book holds is invaluable, other reasons bring it down. There are many errors and typos in the book that make it very evident that the editing was done half-heartedly. Quite honestly, most of the poetry felt like it was written by a child. One can understand the thoughts, feelings, and associated emotions, but there are many better ways to portray them that only come with good old practice, one of these ways being poetry. Poetry is difficult and unforgiving when you don't know how to deal with it. The poetry in this book truly is thoughtful, and the message behind it is heart-touching, but the way the poetry was written is barely average.
There is no denying that poetry is the biggest form of freedom one has and that anyone can write poetry however they wish. But if said poetry is to be displayed to others, it means it was written for people to read as well. And hence, must be of a form that others would understand and appreciate. For example, the line, "Life is bitter, life is sweet; if you get to the end, you just may earn a treat," from the poem 'Lovers, Fighters, Quitters,' is so childish. If a rhyming scheme does not suit the poem, there is no compulsion to pursue it. The beauty of poetry is the fact that no matter how you write, you always find your way. However, that only comes with a lot of practice.
But a plus side to this is that you can see the gradual improvement in the poetry, and it displays the poet's commitment to this form. Poetry is difficult, but once you understand it, it shows. You grow with your poetry, and the poet allows us to witness this growth with him.
The random capitalization of words to show emphasis feels completely unnecessary because, more than anything else, capitalization is associated with anger and screaming. Consider a line from the same poem above as an example. "We have fought, and we have loved, and, in the moments, FELT ABOVE!"
Certain poems are slightly graphic in nature, but that is just for those who do not like graphic descriptions of love or war. I can't say I finished the book all at once; it did take me a while to get through. Nonetheless, the poetry deserves praise because the chaos and messiness make this book so original. That's its charm.
All along, we have been led to believe that it takes a warrior to understand a warrior. But the author tells us otherwise. Overall, the insight one gains through this book makes it worth reading.
******
You, This Is Me...OVER?!
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
“You, This Is Me…OVER?” is a beautiful book that talks, sings, and recites to its readers the severity and impact of war on the fragile human mind. It is one of the most diverse books I've read, bordering on being a poetry collection cum autobiography cum self-help book. Yet somehow, this book reads more like a diary than a novel in an intimate way. The author presents us with his poetry while describing his experiences and also providing beautiful and effective ways of getting through life when you feel stuck. The illustrations in the book were a nice bonus.
I've watched and heard soldiers talk about their struggles, and yes, I've watched many movies and read many books about the struggles of war, but until I read this book, I never quite understood the struggles of being a warrior. Reading this book felt like I opened up a warrior's diary and watched as they slowly fell apart on paper, chronicling their journey with pain, loss, love, and disengagement from the world.
This is not your typical "my life during the war" kind of book that only veterans or soldiers can understand or relate to. This book is for anyone who wants to know or wishes to understand what war can do to the human mind. And along with that, there's poetry about love, strength, and many more topics that would never otherwise see the light of day. Further, there are honest descriptions of family and friends that I absolutely loved. Truly, like I said, this book is diverse and beautiful.
The way the author wrote about his love made me believe that perhaps true love does exist and my faith in such love was restored. 'My muse, my music' was so heart-touching, I cannot count the amount of times I smiled reading it. The arrangement of certain poetry into parts was done superbly. In some parts, in the midst of loss and pain, one can find odes of passionate love.
'Debt of blood upon our shoulders' felt like I was reading the lyrics of a war song with drums in the background while 'Hold on' painfully and soul-touchingly described the disastrous effects of war on the mind. Reading this book made me feel proud of our soldiers around the world who keep us safe by sacrificing themselves.
Even then, I gave this book only three stars out of five. It is far from perfect for a multitude of reasons. While the overall emotional value this book holds is invaluable, other reasons bring it down. There are many errors and typos in the book that make it very evident that the editing was done half-heartedly. Quite honestly, most of the poetry felt like it was written by a child. One can understand the thoughts, feelings, and associated emotions, but there are many better ways to portray them that only come with good old practice, one of these ways being poetry. Poetry is difficult and unforgiving when you don't know how to deal with it. The poetry in this book truly is thoughtful, and the message behind it is heart-touching, but the way the poetry was written is barely average.
There is no denying that poetry is the biggest form of freedom one has and that anyone can write poetry however they wish. But if said poetry is to be displayed to others, it means it was written for people to read as well. And hence, must be of a form that others would understand and appreciate. For example, the line, "Life is bitter, life is sweet; if you get to the end, you just may earn a treat," from the poem 'Lovers, Fighters, Quitters,' is so childish. If a rhyming scheme does not suit the poem, there is no compulsion to pursue it. The beauty of poetry is the fact that no matter how you write, you always find your way. However, that only comes with a lot of practice.
But a plus side to this is that you can see the gradual improvement in the poetry, and it displays the poet's commitment to this form. Poetry is difficult, but once you understand it, it shows. You grow with your poetry, and the poet allows us to witness this growth with him.
The random capitalization of words to show emphasis feels completely unnecessary because, more than anything else, capitalization is associated with anger and screaming. Consider a line from the same poem above as an example. "We have fought, and we have loved, and, in the moments, FELT ABOVE!"
Certain poems are slightly graphic in nature, but that is just for those who do not like graphic descriptions of love or war. I can't say I finished the book all at once; it did take me a while to get through. Nonetheless, the poetry deserves praise because the chaos and messiness make this book so original. That's its charm.
All along, we have been led to believe that it takes a warrior to understand a warrior. But the author tells us otherwise. Overall, the insight one gains through this book makes it worth reading.
******
You, This Is Me...OVER?!
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: You, This Is Me...OVER?! by Clinton Beaudel Dooley
