Official Review: Naming The Invisible

[Sam Ibeh]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Naming The Invisible" by Barbara Branch Bates.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Naming The Invisible by Barbara Branch Bates is a collection of thirty-three short poems depicting nature in its entirety, beauty, and captivating form. It also has a couple of poems that give a few insights into love and life's struggle. From her writing, I saw nature in a way I'd never seen before. I got to appreciate some details I took for granted or overlooked. She gave spice to nature and made a beautiful phenomenon more appealing. She made me wish for things that we had lost to the rise in industrialization and technology. One such thing is the chirping of birds in the morning, which I no longer experience, as the area I reside contains no trees. This book reminded me of how much I missed nature and the beautiful feelings it gave me.

Poetry is one aspect of writing that I've been working hard to develop. Though I'm not always consuming poetic materials, I'm always intrigued by the awesome ways poets paint beautiful pictures in my mind. Bates isn't an exception. She stringed words together to create imaginary worlds that I would travel to and not want to return in a hurry. I found myself trapped in the way she effortlessly described items in the book. To give you a sneak peek into what I enjoyed, here's a beautiful line the author used to describe the grapefruit: "The knife circles the inside edge along the lip until the little triangles loosen and the fruit opens to more than its mirror image, an interior pattern so perfectly formed that following it ensures each bite exquisite."

One thing that I look out for whenever I read a piece of poetry is the rhyme scheme. Unfortunately, the author opted for the free verse form of poetry. As much as I would have loved to see some rhymes here and there, I did appreciate the author's creativity. The lack of rhymes didn't detract from the poetic flow of the poems.

The arrangement of the poems was great to see. The thirty-three poems were divided into four categories: "Nightscapes," "About the Wild," "On Foreign Soil," and "Rendez-vous." This grouping helped me read the different poems in perspective. While focusing on a particular poem's specific message, I could also see the overarching concept that inspired it.

This book was flawlessly edited in terms of grammar and typos. However, the formatting left much to be desired. The line breaks in between sentences made the reading a tad stressful. Also, a standard pattern would have helped give the author a unique voice in the world of poetry. I was left with doubts about the poems' originalities; they came off as though the author copied them from different places and pasted them without formatting. Additionally, it made the book look like a no-brainer.

On this note, I would rate the book 3 out of 4 stars. I would have given it a perfect rating, as it was an exciting read and contained no typos. However, the issues I encountered made me take away a point. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys free verse poems.

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Naming The Invisible
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[Kennedy NC]

Poetry is my favourite genre. I particularly appreciate poems that appreciate nature. Great review.

[Vkaur]

Free verse poems do seem more popular these days. Nature and poetry are my favourite combinations, and this seems right up my street. Thank you for your great review!

[Etienneza]

The anthology sounds alluring .The option for free form allows for the individual's interpretation. Yes,as nature and mind scapes converge possibility and creative thought abounds.

[Suraiya Baksh]

This is very fun reading about nature, this poem mde me like if i was in the poem

[GNerd]

I loved your honest review. I think I'll enjoy this poem since it's a free verse. Thank you