“Tranquil Thursday”: The Sun and Her Flowers by Rupi Kaur (Poetry Book Review)
Synopsis: In this poetry book, Rupi Kaur explores heartbreak, childhood, family, and self-love in short segments accompanied by art, adding a touch of extended imagination.
Categorical Rankings (/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐):
-Pacing ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️: The book is a quick read even when taking in the poems slowly.
-Theme ⭐️⭐️⭐️: I think the general message of how one can overcome hardships and extract beauty from difficulty could have been explored with more distinctiveness.
-Overall enjoyment ⭐️⭐️: I would have liked to see more development throughout the poems since most felt either incomplete or unimpressive.
Story Insights (mild spoilers):
This is my second time reading a poetry book by Rupi Kaur, and though it felt overall more positive than Milk and Honey, it still lacks depth.
Some of the pieces exploring her family life and culture were ones that I could relate to due to my background; however, the poems describing heartbreak and healing fell flat as I had no relation to the subject or strong interest in the writing.
Subjectivity is, of course, inevitable when it comes to critiquing storytelling. But I do think the poetry could have been constructed in such a way that readers having a hard time seeing themselves reflected in the pieces could have resonated with more immersive, passionate, and authentic stories, reaching a broader audience.