Review of A Fate Unwound Too Soon

[Eriny Youssef]

[Following is a volunteer review of "A Fate Unwound Too Soon" by anna-karen sorensen.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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This book is about premature babies. Poetic and real, it is told by Anna-Karen Sorensen, a doctor in the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit). She mentioned that it wasn't her intention to write a book of poems when she first started the project. However, the book ended up being a collection of poems with pictures accompanying some of them. As readers, we couldn't be happier it turned out this way.

All the poems are about premature babies, but they are not all the same. Some deal with the helplessness of those tiny babes, some with the pain of the mothers, and others with the struggle of the caretakers. Some are told from the point of view of the baby and others from that of the adults around. The author also included a full rounding report in one of the poems to give the reader a glimpse of a day in the life of a caretaker in the NICU.

I loved the pictures and the selected short poems that followed them the most. Although heartbreaking, they were powerful and warming. They stirred emotions inside of me and suspended any other thoughts I had. They made me focus on them alone. After all, isn't that what we look for in poetry? I also loved the author's depiction of motherly love as passion, compassion, or "one cocooned in the other," as she puts it.

There's nothing that I disliked about the book. However, I believe more attention to its aesthetics could have added to it. That doesn't mean its current design is lacking. It still delivered a vibe of the melancholia and tenderness that clouds the topic.

I give A Fate Unwound Too Soon by Anna-Karen Sorensen 4 out of 4 stars. The content forms an articulate account of the subject, the writing has a satisfying poetic quality, and the text is professionally edited.

Taking into consideration the sensitivity of the topic, this book may be very useful to parents who lost or gave birth to premature babies. At the same time, it could be unsuitable for them. It depends on the reader's character. That being said, this book isn't only for parents. It's for everyone. It is important for all of us to know about the world those little angels experience, the pain that goes with it, and the collateral beauty that befriends it. I would encourage everyone to read it except those who can't bear this type of emotional load for the time being. Heartbreaking and touching, this book of poetry will stir your emotions and introduce you to a world unknown to many.

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A Fate Unwound Too Soon
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