This was a decent poetry book. Each chapter/section focused on a specific feeling like sadness, love, heartbreak, etc. There was a point where I felt a bit bored, but I decided to finish the book. Some sections are better than others. Some of the poems were straight forward. As another reviewer stated, some of the poems felt like inspirational quotes that you find online. Overall, I would recommend this book if you like poems.

I am going to admit something that should make me ashamed: I picked this book solely off the cover. I do it so often that my friends are just used to me picking up books as we walk by displays in the library and leaving before we even make it back to the stacks. How could I pass up on this cover? I love it and it looks exactly like something that would drag me in. Why would a jellyfish have pillow thoughts? I was immediately drawn in. Goodreads and Amazon have different covers for the book, but I refuse to acknowledge them or use them.

To follow the jellyfish motif, there are little drawings of a jellyfish between the sections that match the sections. I have no idea why I love it, but I do. I didn't know that jellyfish would be a good way to sell me on something until this book. It might not hurt that I then imagined every poem was written by a jellyfish, which in the end just made me worried about jellyfish culture and very impressed with their emotional depth. 

The poems were very striking. They ranged from one line to paragraphs. I was finding myself relating to most of the poems almost immediately. This book became a very personal and visceral experience for me. It was shocking that a jellyfish could understand me so well. I found so many of the poems allowed for multiple expressions of love. There was an openness that allowed them to apply to my long distance best friend that I love, as well as to partners I have lost. I love how it fit into a more modern view of love. 

I also requested another book by this author. I am excited. NetGalley might be morphing me into someone who looks forward to poetry.

Every-day poetry that everyone can enjoy and devour; sadly, it just wasn't my cup of tea. This collection tried too hard to be uplifting and motivational a lot of times. The use of second person in the poetry did make it feel like the reader was being directly addressed and thus, I could connect to it better but because of it I felt a little uneasy and also had frequent 'can I eye-roll please' moments because of the overly cliché lines used that you hear in almost every motivational lecture whether it be from your guidance counselor or in this case, the author.

Some pieces, specifically in 'the portion "if you are in love" were too trite in my opinion. They did reflect strong emotion but the writing could've been much more better if it was something refreshing rather than something you feel like you read as a quote somewhere or in a valentine's day card. In addition to this, some features of poetry writing just didn't work for this collection in my opinion, especially rhyme, for some reason, every time a piece with rhyming came up, it felt forced and uneven - every time a poem with rhyme came up, I was distracted from all that I enjoyed in this collection.

The one thing I really liked about this collection was the way it was structured; the different parts made you ready for whatever was about to come and as an ocd-ish person I liked reading something clearly very organized. Furthermore, the thought behind the structuring is really nice, as the cover says "It is divided into sections to read when you feel you need them most."

Admittedly, I didn't particularly enjoy the first half, but the second half was much better! There were some well-written poems towards the end. Special mention to "if you need encouragement" portion because all the pieces felt original, heartfelt and resounded with me more than the rest of the collection.

Overall, even though for me this lacked originality, it wasn't something that I regret reading.

Like many of the other modern poetry collections out there, Pillow Thoughts is not so much a collection of poems, but a collection of mini guides to get through specific moments in time. Much of this collection is focused on the reader and less on the experience of the poet, however, it is that initial experience that leads the poet to be able to dole out advice, love, and wise words to the rest of the world.

I will say that you have to be in a certain mood to read this book. I read the first half of the book during a pretty bitter time, and I spent most of the time reading this scoffing and rolling my eyes as I turned the page. The bitterness in myself eased up, and I read the second half of the collection, completely open to what it was trying to tell me. I can't say that it's a cure-all for a bad mood, but if you pick it up at the right time, you can help your soul find some perspective.

This is a poetry book with a lot of praise but lack of impact. It did not felt like poetry. It felt like a conversation.

A conversation in bits and pieces. I did find a poem which came under my rug of likes but otherwise. Meh!

Thank you so much to Andrew McMeel publishing via netgalley for sending me an ARc copy of Pillow thoughts by courtney peppernell. Pillow Thoughts will be released on August 29, 2017.

Pillow thoughts was beautifully written, very descriptive and with any poetry collection hopefully certain poems speak to you.

"I have been a little often on since the day I met you this is because I've never known what it was like it to be perfectly aligned"

Pillow thoughts was something i hadnt heard anything about and was amazed at how complex, deep, and emotional her poems got.
Everyone is going to view poems differently because we have all been through different things in life but i think this book has something for everyone!

"I hate to spoil the ending but you are fine you are still here you are going to make it"

Poetry usually isn't my thing, but after skimming through a collection in a bookstore, I decided to give it another go. I found Pillow Thoughts on NetGalley and decided to request a copy of it.

I'm really so glad that I did. I'm a big fan of those heart-wrenching ballads of the 90s, the kind of songs that make you want to ugly cry because you can relate to longing and the heartbreak. This collection is a lot like that. There were so many of the poems that I felt like I could relate to, which to me makes a reading experience that much more enjoyable.


I also liked that Peppernell wrote with such rawness. Through so much of this collection, there's no second guessing the meaning or need to analyze, which is what I typically struggle with when it comes to poetry. She outlines feelings and thoughts exactly, throwing in some beautiful imagery along the way.


If you're a reader like me who typically goes for the straight-forwardness of fiction, you can give this collection a shot. I think it's worth it!

f rom this first poem, I felt as though my feelings were etched and replicated on every page. Courtney is in touch with all aspects of love, be it happiness., unrequited love., love lost, or the excitement of finding new love

Some of the poems are beautifully written but others sound too obsessive like the first two parts of the book. After the first two parts, I gradually start to like the book and my favorite poem is "I feel as though I am always writing my first draft. As though my life is a series of edits that I never have time to complete.". I would recommend this book for people who are deeply in love, hurt, or lost.

This was such a beautiful book. It was filled with raw emotions and text made into vivid pictures. I fell in love with this book form the first section. It contains smal poems on each page, all of them fit perfectly into its section. This is the type of book I would love to have on my bedside table to read when I cannot sleep. Just to realize that I am not alone with my feelings.

Make yourself a cup of tea and take a big blanket over you, get ready to get your feels on!

It's good but only in parts. Sporadic line breaks and fancy (read - annoying) line alignment issue is (sort of) strong with this one as well.

The content (again, in parts) felt good while reading, soothing even, but it's easily forgettable and I don't think that's how Poetry should be.

Thank you Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sadly, I didn't enjoy this poetry collection as much as I wanted to. They're like rundown sentences, often times cheesy and it lacks substance especially on the first half of this collection. I like some pieces on the second half but it's forgettable and it didn't leave a huge impact on me.

Pillow Thoughts is a collection of poetry and prose, one that is divided into sections to read when you need or want to. Peppernell’s poems are honest, raw, and authentic and that’s what made them really special.

I think I liked her poems more and more as the book progressed. At first, I thought it would be just a decent, pleasant collection; an enjoyable one, but nothing too memorable. Things, however, changed when I realized she was talking about f/f relationships. What?? I know, right? Poems about f/f relationships? Poems that beautifully and honestly depict what it feels like to be in love with a woman? Written by a woman confident in her own sexuality, eager to depict these – often ignored or overlooked – relationship in a positive, realistic way? Amazing.

What I really loved was the way Peppernell showed sapphic relationship. There were cute, domestic moments that we don’t often see in mainstream media; and no scene in any poem oversexualized f/f pairings, as so often happens. I really enjoyed this fresh, authentic perspective of something that means so much to me.

Overall, it was a good collection, one that made me want to read more by the author, which is why I’m picking up her The Road Between next.



**An ARC was provided via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review**

Thank you Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC. This collection of poetry is being published August 29, 2017. I am going to pick myself up a copy when it is released.

Pillow Thoughts is a collection of poetry. This collection is uniquely divided into section for however you are feeling. The poems are beautiful and so relatable, I found. Every section hows its unique poems and no poem is the same. I bookmarked many pages to go back into to reread because they are so true to how I am feeling right now. I think everytime you read this collection different poems will standout to you and mean a lot to you depending on the time of your life. I would recommend this to anyone, even if you haven’t picked up a poetry book before, you have to start somewhere.

Absolutely stunning. Would make a great gift for anyone who loves poetry!

The poems in this book were hit and miss for me. Some were really great and others didn’t for me. Poetry is such a subjective thing that I feel that’s how much it goes with most poetry collections. Divided into several sections, there’s a little something for every mood (If You’re Lonely, If You’re In Love, etc.). The writing is simple, not flowery or full of overdone metaphor, and that works in it’s favor.

I'm not going to beat around the bushes with this review. It's hard because I really don't enjoy writing negative reviews or saying something against a poetry collection that obviously means so much to the author, but I hated this book! It was so difficult to read through and I felt no emotional connection to it whatsoever. I should have just put it down. I shouldn't have read all the way through it. I should have known something was up when I struggled to get it to download on my iPad. Maybe the fates were trying to intervene? *shakes head* I just don't know. 

The book was chalk full of poems that were choppy, poorly edited and extremely repetitive. Now, I'm not an expert on poetry, but usually it has some kind of flow or rhythm. These poems didn't have either. Also, I often stopped and checked back to earlier pages. Everything sounded the same. I kept on wondering to myself: didn't I read this before? The wording was also painfully obvious or straight forward. It completely lacked figurative language and metaphors, two things that I believe make poetry magical and mysterious. 

I completely reg my discussion to request this book on NetGalley. I've never been so disappointed by a poetry collection in my entire life. There are so many wonderful collections out there to read and love. Go pick up those and avoid this one at all costs! Ugh!

I loved that this book is divided into sections with different themes. There's a section for if you're lonely. Another for if you need a reason to stay. One for if you're sad. While not all of the sections resonated with me, reading this book did, overall, feel like sipping a mug of hot tea. It was warm and encouraging and comforting. It was like flannel sheets and an afternoon snuggle on a rainy grey day. Read it if you feel alone, feel sad or are in need of comforting. Choose the section of the book that you feel applies best and settle in. This book won't make the bad things disappear, but it may just give you hope for the future.

This was an unimpressive collection of poetry. There are a few lines, here and there, that I enjoyed, but as a whole this felt like the work of an unpolished writer first exploring poetry. The themes didn't vary much, and most of the poems felt very samey.

(from my Goodreads review)

Pillow Talk is a poetry book for young lovers. Its a collections of poems of young girls laughing and drunk in the intoxication of initial new love while on a sunny beach with an endless summer ahead of them. It is of all young girls laying in bed and dwelling over a smartphone; obsessing with old photos and text of lost or betrayed lovers. It is of young souls missing the love in their lives and isolated while surrounded by people everywhere. It is a maelstrom of every shade of passion and positivity that a young woman is confident of and preaches for all to hear. And it is her confused and doubt when that confidence is lost. All these poems seem written on worn notebooks of doodled page tears and colour.. and transferred into a published collection for others to encounter and witness.

And the best part is that it is all written and expressed very well. It’s nicely satisfying to see this much depth from a writer so young and not ancient with age (full of old love, pain, experience and goodbyes). Kudos for Courtney Peppernell for conveying such depth of feeling of lesbian love, loss and support. Proving to the world that we all feel the same way about the affairs of the heart, no matter your age or orientation. The artwork is cute too!