I’m just going to go ahead and put this audiobook on repeat for the next 10 years. Wow, so impressed! This is a deep, touching, challenging book of poetry that I had the privilege of listening to the Author Narrate. It brought me to tears at some points, it has such a strong message in a gentle tone for women of every kind. I have included one of my favorite lines: “Grow wiser, grow deeper, but never grow up” Miss Mayrock has incredible talent in her writing but also her Spoken word was absolutely perfect. The audiobook has background music in some sections which absolutely enhances the beautiful poetry.

5/5 Stars

This was my first experience of listening to poetry as an audiobook and there is something so vital about hearing the poet read their own writing. It transforms the words on the page into deeper and more impactful art. I had not heard of Alija Maycock before and am intrigued to look at this book in the physical form and read further.

Dear Girl is more than just a collection of poetry. It is a manifesto, a clarion call, a siren’s song calling all women, all girls, all the people who were told they couldn’t, they shouldn’t, they should sit down, be quiet, make themselves smaller. It’s impossible to put this book down without feeling more empowered and more hopeful. I dare you to try.

Somehow I missed that this was poetry, so I was super excited when I started listening and found out that's what it is. This audiobook has made me a firm believer that all poetry should be turned into audiobooks. The narrator did an amazing job bringing the poems to life and I loved hearing each new one.

I wish I was able to read this book as a young girl. At times, it gave me a confidence boost, but also reminded me of some of the negative parts of being a women.

The writing is absolutely beautiful and I loved the narrator as well. I have never listened to poetry before and I enjoyed how each line was spoken.

I highly recommend this to all genders across the world.

Albeit well-meant, it was mediocre and full of platitudes. Most of the time, it felt like the author was trying to include everything about modern feminism ever published on the internet, but she still equated womanhood with wombs and the heterosexual female experience. Very often I felt the book should be titled "Dear boy", because it talked more about men than it did about women. I wouldn't recommend it to any of my friends, because there is more value in some posts on Instagram than in this poetry book.

A must-read for any girl or woman who has faced adversity in their life. Such a powerful message and voice. Aija tells a powerful story in which we can heal the wounds and make positive changes in this world to switch societal standards and raise our children to respect and not lead a double standard to diminish the adversity we face today as women with thoughts, events, and traumas.

I really enjoyed the ethereal vibes and honesty of this audiobook. While some of these poems are a bit overdone or repetitive, there are several that spoke a whole lot of truth. Hearing the lines spoken out loud is empowering - her voice is very powerful, and the audiobook feels like a long motivational speech. The way she describes women talking badly about other women is so important. “If we’re fighting for equality, there has to be camaraderie.” Since we’re taught and trained to compare ourselves and others, we’re born into a need to fight against it. I think all women should listen to this book at least once a year to reaffirm truths about themselves and about other women. “Your past lives with you dear girl, but you are not your past.” So many good quotes that I want to tape up on my mirror to motivate me through tough days!

3 out of 5 - It was ok.

Poetry has never been my thing, but the story being told and narrator were both powerful.

The theme throughout about lives of women and their journey through life was one that did hit close to home with me.

There were times the music was louder than the narrator, which was distracting.

Thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Audio for this advanced copy.

This is the BEST THING I HAVE EVER HEARD. Incredible poetry, incredible reading, incredible poet. I'll be telling everyone I know about Dear Girl. Beautiful, emotional, raw, inspiring - I wish I could go back and give it to my teenage self. Absolutely adored this - amazing publishing.

Dear Girl is a fantastic collection of powerful poetry that focused on uplifting girls and women. The poems were short but you could really tell that each word was carefully chosen. The subject manner wasn’t new. I’ve seen it in other contemporary poetry collections, but there was just something so impactful about Mayrock’s words. They are short but brutally honest and discuss many issues that impact the lives of women around the world. 

"Dear girl,
You ask me what I wish for you.
I simply say -
Never allow any soul to clip your wings
You were not born an ember,
You were born a flame."

The poems are a call to action. They are inspiring, empowering and make you want to rise up and speak out! I experienced this poetry collection as an audiobook and I think that really contributed to this feeling of wanting to do something and take action. The author narrated it herself and spoken word poetry has also been a favourite of mine. Her voice is so emotive and full of power. I felt her sadness, anger, happiness, etc. But more importantly, I felt like I was listening to a close friend tell me about her hopes and dreams. Listening to the author made it more personal. I just planned on listening to the collection while making dinner but ended up finishing it in one sitting. I couldn’t stop thinking about it, that’s how beautiful and powerful the poems were! 

“Dear everyone,
Grab ahold of your voice. 
it is time to make a choice 
to believe survivors
to pay us all the same 
to give women of color equal access and opportunity
to protect the safety of trans girls everyday. 
Make the choice to change the climate. 
Make the choice to not stay silent.
This is not the era of girls, 
this is the future of girls.”

I highly recommend this collection, especially the audiobook, to lovers of spoken word poetry. Also, since the writing and topics are within a similar vein, if you have enjoyed Amanda Lovelace’s poems, I think you’d also enjoy these as well.

Thank you to Netgalley and publishers for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 2.5/5

Dear Girl is a poetry collection about girlhood and womanhood. I found parts inspiring, but overall it was a bit too generic and nothing new. I wanted something deeper with a bit more insight. This was full of generic things most woman can agree and identify with. I wanted something more personal. Still a great message if you want to check it out for yourselves.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.* What a delightful collection of poems. The collection is a celebration of feminism, womanhood and growing up. Some poems are sad, some inspiring, but all are beautiful. It is also a call to arms in these uncertain times. 'Unite us through persecution' she tells us. 'We've got equality, but public policy shows the contrary..'
I look forward to reading more of Mayrock's work and would definitely recommend her work to fans of poetry and those keen to lift up women.

Fast read but one that won't leave me anytime soon. Powerful words from a debut poet about women supporting women. While this was a good read, I feel it would have been a five star read if I was younger. Younger readers (teens and early twenties) will probably really connect with this. The audio was brilliantly executed and produced. It made me want to hear this poet speak/perform in person. I will recommend this to all of the younger readers I come into contact with.

I was able to review Dear Girl audiobook for free from Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Audio for providing me with an advanced ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed listening to the audiobook especially since the author Aija Mayrock narrates it herself and this is her debut poetry collection.
The poems are on point and empowering. This collection is about feminism and about becoming a woman. The poems make you think about them, about life, about the world and about everything. This book reminds us women that we need to support each other, believe in each other and build each other up instead of tearing each other down.

I loved this collection of poetry. It's relatable, empowering and very fitting considering all that is happening currently. I would recommend this to all of the amazing women in my life.

“I wrote to find answers; instead I found myself.” This is a beautiful exploration of womanhood, trauma, and shared experience.

I don’t read a lot of poetry. I follow a few poets on Instagram and last year I read collections by Rupi Kaur and Mary Oliver. Those were the first since my freshman college English courses. Mainly, I have avoided poetry because I am an impatient reader and if I have to take too much time to process I usually don’t. However, dipping my toes in the water has been nice and these haven’t bogged me down.
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This book is one I’ve seen around on Instagram in the last few weeks. I got an ARC from Net Galley. It will be released on 8/25/20. It’s quite short. It’s only 45 minutes long. It’s read by the author and she did a wonderful job with the narration.
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These are a collection of anthems for young women and women. They deal with some of the current issues in our society. The Me Too movement, rape culture, pay inequality, etc. You get the drift. It’s very good and worth checking out!

I never read any poetry before and I used to think that it could be complex and difficult to understand but after reading Dear Girl, my opinion changed. It was so easy to read and so beautiful, I really enjoyed it. I picked it up on NetGalley because of the cover that I found really pretty and I did not regret it. The voice is powerful. It is about empowerment and it really is uplifting. I think every girl and woman can relate to most of the poems, they are just so simple and yet so full of truth. As said in this poetry collection, we need to support and help each other, so let’s do it; it’s about women everywhere. The poems are a call for women all around the world to rise up and be heard. This collection is not about reading something you have never heard before, but reading about something you have maybe not been able to formulate before, about something you may have not been told before. I don’t know what I was looking for when I started reading but I definitely feel like I got more strengths after.

I loved the poems in this book, and especially the variety of topics that they entail. They are truely uplifting, playful and serious at the same time. It was great exploring the words.

I had hoped to listen to these poems in audio-form, for what is more awesome than to listen to the author reading these poems aloud? Unfortunately the file never started playing after the first second. On the other hand, fortunately there was the 'normal' e-book copy for me to read, and that was a pleasure already.