I gave this 2.5 out of five stars. I liked some of this but I during other parts of this I got bored while reading it and it took me a while to get through.

Thank you to Candlewick Press and NetGalley for this ARC.

It took me a while to read this collection because I kept stopping and rereading each poem. These are definitely pieces that need to be read aloud in order to give them the attention and reading they deserve. A great read for poetry fans.

I have a new favorite poet and a new favorite poetry book and I suspected that would happen after reading the very first page and then stopping for a week to prepare myself to be changed by the rest of the book.
I loved each and every poem, the language is so beautiful, the themes so relatable, the poems so honest, so earnest, so good that I will never forget how it felt to read them for the first time.
From Blackness to Britishness, from dating to grieving, from hurting to healing, Sophia's poems are filled with heart and empathy over herself and the rest of the world, both teaching the reader about her and themselves.
I hope she never stops sharing herself with us.
Thank you to Candlewick Press and NetGalley for this DRC.

Was a beautiful quick read. Body positive and world positive. Really eye opening to what is currently going on in the world and what we can perhaps do differently to chance the way those we think of ourselves. Highly encourage. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This poetry collection is by performance artist, Sophia Thakur is brilliant. As the reader, consumes each line of poetry the sounds of the words leap of the page. The collection is classified as YA but the subject matters contained within it, mature adults can identify.

I was given the opportunity to review an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley.

I didn't realize this was a poetry collection, somehow I though it wan a novel in verse, something similar to The Poet X, and while it does give the same feeling and almost talks of a similar experience, it's a poetry collection not a novel.

The author is a spoken word poet and this is my 2nd book in this style, and it's growing on me and I'm loving it. She's talking about love and family and loss and self-confidence and faith and self image and a lot of other relatable subjects. Also talks about belonging, being an immigrant in England, and her image between her heritage and her current home. I found a lot of quotes and lines that really stuck with me, and others I couldn't relate to, as with a lot of personal writings.

It's a decent collection and gives you something to think about, but I couldn't say that I was blown away by it.

I thank Netgalley and Candlewick Press for the digital ARC.

Yay!! Thanks to the new Netgalley app, I was able to access this file in order to read it.

I am a huge poetry fan and it’s no surprise I loved this book.

What I loved:
Every page is filled with really fabulous language. Each and every line hits a perfect cadence. You could spend so much time reading and re-reading these poems (and I plan to). Equally accessible for seasoned poetry lovers and those that are new to the genre / verse form, this book will capture your emotions and make you think.

I can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy and read it again. And I’d highly recommend it to poetry fans.

Sophia Thakur writes with a rhythm that makes her poetry beg to be read aloud. The author tackles complicated topics like love, race, and just finding your space in life. While not every poem struck a chord, there were plenty that stood out, and each reader will gain something different from this book.

I feel like I sit in the middle when it comes to reviewing this collection because half of the poems hit me so hard and the other half fell short. Some of the pieces felt a bit too surface level for my taste but I appreciated the accessibility of the writing style. The topics were encouraging and personal all at once, which I thoroughly enjoyed. All in all a good collection that I didn't mind spending time with.

“When the world denies you
Find your power
And write.”

A collection of poems that explore issues of identity, difference, perseverance, relationships, fear, loss, joy and the experiences of growing up as a mixed-raced woman.

Someone Give This Heart a Pen it’s a collection of raw, honest and powerful poems, each of them beautifully written and full of emotion. I loved reading this.

Thank you NetGalley, Candlewick Press and Sophia Thakur for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC!

I really enjoyed this collection of poems although I found it hard to see the connection between them - but that may be because I thought this was a novel in verse rather than a collection of poetry.

The writing has some amazing lines which are quote-worthy and heartbreaking.

Poetry collections are always hit or miss with me, especially with more recently published ones. But this one, Somebody Give This Heart a Pen, was definitely a hit. You could feel the emotions behind each and every poem. They weren’t just pretty words written in incomplete sentences on a page—compared to some other poetry collections I’ve read. It contains poems about race, family, mental health, growing up, and discovering one’s self. I’ve marked and highlighted this collection so much. Many poems that I just really loved.
A few of my favorites include:
Excerpt from a Letter to My Little Black Girl; page 12
Fearmongering; page 25
Grandma, If You Can Hear; page 29
Foreverlove?; page 39
Risky Nostalgia; page 41
When the Strong Friend Cries; page 44
DIY Romance; page 86

I was blown away by the amount of raw emotion and pain was packed into this short poetry book. Sophia Thakur has honestly poured her heart and soul into each and every word, the author's pain past and present is dripping from the pages and makes your heart ache for her. The poems touched on being Black in Britain and this is definitely a topic that isn't discussed or represented enough in UKYA, however I think the UK publisher of this novel have sadly let the author down with a rather plain cover whereas the US publishers have chosen an image that clearly shows the representation depicted in this poetry collection which is what interested me and made me check out this book. I think emotional, personal poetry like Somebody Give This Heart A Pen will resonate with people in different ways, I found majority of this collection to be so powerful and impactful.

This book is a poetry collection about growing up as a mixed race women. She states that these poems are a record of the people she’s lived life with.

I enjoyed these. There was a lot of hard things but it was described so clearly. I thought the sections of growth, wait, break, grow again were great. My favorite couple lines was “ I’ve always seen stretch marks as synonyms for growth and isn’t growth the beautiful part of change? A woman I know calls her stretch marks by her children’s names and that is still the most beautiful story I’ve ever read.” (P 95) I so appreciate the chance to read this book. Thanks to Netgalley and Candlewick Press for this free copy in exchange for my honest review.

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

This book of poems was beautiful, raw and completely heartfelt and I really enjoyed reading it.

Some of the poems you can feel the complete heartbreak and pain the author is writing about and some are so very happy. Sophie Thakur has a great gift of making her words flow into your soul and stir up raw emotions residing inside you.

Thank you Sophie for sharing such a beautiful book with us all.

I really enjoyed this book of poetry. It touched on many different aspects of life. if you like poetry I think you will enjoy this book

*Thank you to Net Galley and Candlewick Press for the advance copy of this book*

In this powerful poetry collection, Thakur revisits her own coming of age in a voice well beyond her years. The overall theme of the collection is self-love, but that is often coupled with race (Except from a Letter to My Little Black Girl, Fearmongering), personal expression (Girl, You Better Sing), and relationships (Risk Nostalgia)How We Got Here. Part 20 - my personal favorite poem.)

Scary Everyone and Fidgeting tell the beginning and end of processing anxiety. In the former work, Thakur questions her motives, and everyone else's, leading to increased anxiety as she becomes overwhelmed with processing her increasing thoughts. While the latter focuses on overcoming that anxiety through medication and being present in the moment. In the poem I'm fine thanks, you? And other white lies, Thakur posits what people really mean when they say "I'm fine."

The last few pieces are congratulatory expressions of self-love. In DIY Romance, Thakur's health and happiness are her only responsibilities during her self-care/self-love session. And what greater gift can we give ourselves than the gift of time to explore the things we love. When to Write serves as an inspiration to anyone struggling to find the time to focus on what drives them.

I really enjoyed this collection. This is a good balance of story telling and self-reflection which helped provide relatable context for the reader. I look forward to reading more of Thakur's work in the future.

Thank you so much to net galley for sending me a copy of this book. I was so excited to read it but I ended up not really enjoying it

I received a DRC of Somebody Give This Heart a Pen in exchange for an honest review.

Normally I love poetry books and it feels unfair giving this one such a low rate because it has everything to do with me and nothing to do with the author.

I know some people physically hear things they read? I'm not one of those people. Sophia Thakur is a performance poet and her writing style shows it. Things that felt off to me would probably sound incredibly powerful aloud and I'd love to see her perform the poems in this book.

If you hear things while you read, I'm sure you'll love this. If you don't you might find it a little lackluster. I'd recommend giving it a shot regardless and coming to decision on your own.

Trigger warning: anxiety, self-harm

This is a powerful collection of poems by a biracial author that I think everyone should read!
The poetry is so raw and heartbreaking at times that it made me feel things. In her poems she talks about being biracial, talks about politics and family. She also describes what I think is a toxic relationship and then the heartbreak of dealing with it. Her growth is shown throughout the book and I was floored by her writing.

The following are some of my favorite excerpts from the book.

To describe her anxiety she writes the following lines from her poem titled "Secrets":
'My family have never responded well to imperfection
so the truth of things often comes second.
I swore to my lips
to never send up anything that will compromise
anyone's perception of me.
I have a vision of how I wish to be seen
and I fear that that image will be challenged
if ever they know more of me.'

To describe her on-off relationship she writes the following lines from her poem titled "How we got here part 20":
'But this war we have between us is familiar
and the comfort in familiarity is easier than either of us
deciding to leave.'

About her growth and moving on from all the negativity she describes it in her poem titled "Sprouting":
'Maybe one day, by accident, you'll take a sip or dip in the
river that healed me. And in swallowing, taste all of the
things that could have killed me, but instead, helped me
grow into everything that you swore I could never become
without you.'

This was an amazing collection of poems for a debut author and I look forward to more by her.