The Dorky Writer: andrews mcmeel publishing

TW: Anxiety, depression, death, rape, sex, abortion.

"I am a woman who lives and does everything passionately. When I love, I love hard; when I hurt, hurt badly."

It was difficult to read this book. Difficult to the point I considered stopping. It made me cry since the beginning and made me remember things I thought I was ready to let go. So, pay attention to the back cover's warning and mine: "this book might make you cry..." Even so, I regained courage and continued. Yes, I kept crying, but less this last time. The other part of the warning is also true, by the way: "{this book might] fill you with nostalgia, empower you, or even give you hope."

It's both sad and comforting to know that we are not alone when it comes to heartbreaks, even if it seems that way. Castro Mármol writes down feelings of pain and longing that we might not know how to express through letters and poems, which might seem familiar from other poets nowadays, but that have the precise words to connect directly to you, even if you are not experiencing any of these feelings.

"Eighteen Inches" is an inch-by-inch journey that shows us that love might come and go and that it can be also found again, even if it comes in a different way. I don't feel empowered or hopeful after reading it but I think it's because I'm not there yet, not because this book fails in its purpose. I'm sure that it can be just right for someone else.

I'm eternally grateful to Mirtha, who decided to share a part of her soul to us.

I could read this book thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing ;)

MIRTHA MICHELLE CASTRO MÁRMOL is a Dominican born actress and poet. At the age of five, her family migrated to Miami, Florida. She wrote her first poem at the age of six and since then cultivated a passion for poetry. She currently resides in Los Angeles, California. “Letters, to The Men I Have Loved” is her debut as an author. It consists of profound letters and poems directed to various men during different milestones in her life. Her work expresses loss, love, pain, growth, and hope.

"fairy godmother says villains almost never look like cackling witches, cruel stepmother, or bratty stepsisters, they're so much quieter than, & i think that's what makes them so menacing. in some chapters of your storybook, you'll find them hiding everywhere -even in the faces of those you hold dearest. they never reveal their true intentions until you've already trusted them too much & just like that, everyone you know has turned into a stranger."

I read "the princess saves herself in this one" back in 2016 and I completely fell in love with Amanda Lovelace's style and, if I'm completely honest, I think that book made me change my opinion about poetry books. Even so, I didn't read the rest of "Women Are Some Kind of Magic" books, I don't know why, but I did read "to make monsters out of girls" and it made sense to me perfectly again because I was in a very bad place.

Sadly, I didn't feel any connection with this book. I love the concept, and, for some reason, I love Cinderella (Disney's Cinderella), but I felt nothing. There are a couple of verses I liked but not enough to feel the same way I felt with the previous books.

There are illustrations that fit with the poems, there are illustrations that are repeated several times, but what's worse is that there are some blank pages, which makes the price of the book insane. I think they could've tried more poems or even different illustrations to make it better.

The only reason I'm giving this book an extra star is that I can see a personal evolution in Lovelace. I'm pretty sure that she's transformed from a queen into a fairy godmother whose magic spells are actually these words specially created for broken hearts and desperate souls.

Respect!

I could read this book thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing ;)

AMANDA LOVELACE began writing books of her own, & so she did. When she isn't reading or writing, she can be found waiting for pumpkin spice coffee to come back into season & binge-watching Gilmore Girls. (before you ask: team jess all the way). The lifelong poetess & storyteller currently lives in New Jersey with her partner, their moody cat, & a combined book collection so large it will soon need its own home. she has her B.A. in English literature with a minor in Sociology.