A powerful and important collection looking into what it means to be Black in America. Overall these poems were super accessible and a good collection for people to read who don’t usually like poetry. My favorite poems were the ones that looked at how to truly be an ally and fighter for resistance in America.

This was a current, powerful collection of poetry that made me think critically about social injustice and how it affects POC in their daily lives. Thank you Martina for having the courage to write something so real and raw.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was sent to me as an ARC on NetGalley. However all opinions are of my own.
I will start by including a TW for racial injustice and rape.
A poetry book which, under 100 pages has so much going for it. The poems were very detailed and very powerful. It could potentially put you in a position of uncomfortable feeling. Definitely worth the read if you’re looking for a good poetry book!

I AM THE RAGE is an incredible collection of poetry. I had to pause while reading it, because so many of the poems took my breath away. Highly recommend this for both poetry readers and poetry newcomers.

Wow. This was powerful. That's a word you'll see a lot in reviews for this book, because this book has power. It will change you. Oh my heart!
This book contains 30 free verse poems, all written in 2020. Covering not only the deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, and the subsequent Black Lives Matter protests, these poems shine a light on the pain and rage and fear and frustration and so many other feelings in the author's heart, and does it in such a personal way that the reader can't avoid feeling it. That this is a debut collection is astounding to me, I can't tell you the last time I was so moved and affected by a book as I was by this. I am gobsmacked. I want to give this book to everyone, I want everyone to read it, because it's that visceral and real, and it's that important. I am The Rage is one of the most perfect books I've ever read. Thank you for this, Martina McGowan. Thank you for sharing your heart with us.

#NetGalley

I am The Rage by Dr. Martina McGowan is truly one of the most phenomenal collections of poetry I've read. With her strong poetic voice, McGowan's work speaks against the racial injustices in our world, and especially in the USA, in a way that is chilling, heartbreaking, powerful, and necessary. Each time I thought I had found a favourite poem in the collection, the next poem I read would be just as powerful, with every poem in this book standing its own ground as an excellent piece of poetry and a powerful statement about our society and about the everyday violence imposed upon Black and Brown people.

I truly can't recommend I am The Rage enough and I'm so grateful to have had the chance to read it through netgalley.

I am The Rage is a poetry collection by debut author Martina McGowan. The collection of 30 poems was written in 2020. So much racial injustice, not just in the United States but in the entire world. This is a raw, pure, emotional and heart-breaking collection. It was beautiful and terrifying.

I am The Rage by Dr. Marina McGowan is a debut poetry collection uncovering the emotions behind racial injustice in America. Dr. McGowan writes about Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, the BLM movement, and the everyday struggles of being a Black woman in a country filled with racism.
this collection was written beautifully and the writing was wonderful to read. every poem laid thought-provoking ideas that carried such a sincere and honest tone. it felt eye-opening, allowing one to envision an experience they could never have.

A beautiful poetry book the eloquently uses timely prose. Martina McGowan writes with a certain fluidity that makes I am The Rage both delicate and powerful.

This is an powerful collection exploring racial injustice and its effects at different scales, from the individual to the national. I appreciated McGowan's calling out of white "allies" and the ephemeral nature of that so-called allyship. This is a humbling, eye-opening read and a call to action.

I Am The Rage by Martina McGowan is a powerful, emotional and unforgettable collection. It is filled with an anger, pain and frustration that reflects the emotional state of so many People of Color, not just in the United States but around the globe. The words almost scream from the page, and the way in which they describe tragedies such as the deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd hits home an incredibly visceral way , as do the poems which describe the less dramatic but more frequent daily difficulties that come with being Black in America. I recently read Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, and I found so many of the poems resonated with the way that book made me feel.
The stark illustrations by Diana Ejaita were a pleasant surprise and worked well as a moment to pause and catch a breath between the poems.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

This book of poetry is beautiful. It is relevant, terrifying, heart-breaking, and eye-opening. If you are into emotional reads that will crack open the empathy within you, then you ought to read these poems. I'm not even sure how to describe it other than it captures the emotions of being Black in America today after years of things not getting better. The author writes of grief, fear, and anger, and the way she writes puts you right inside her mind and makes you feel so deeply. It's passionate and wonderful, with visual language that envelops you.

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a stunning poetry collection about the black experience in modern America. I could not put it down, and read it all in one sitting. Dr. McGowan's reflections are brutally honest and occasionally uncomfortable. She reflects on fear and victims of police brutality, generational trauma, and the continuing racism in America. This is a must read filled with beautiful writing and images to go with.

Wow. Reading this beautiful work, my heart was beating fast - racing at the pain and hurt and fear and sadness described in this beautiful book of poetry. Timely with Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, the author exposed emotions in a raw way that was breathtaking to experience. Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the advanced copy. I’m going to buy the physical copy to keep forever.

Mesmo vivendo em um País diferente da autora entendo completamente o enredo que ela quer traçar, a história que ela quer contar, o vilão que ela quer apontar.

Abordando temas como Racismo Estrutural, Violência Policial, Divida Histórica (Escravidão) entre outros, a autora faz ótimos poemas, claros e objetivos, porém com narrativas realistas torna tudo mais visceral, imaginar que nada disso é dramatização, e sim realidade, traz um sentimento de revolta ao leitor.

Não tenho criticas a esse livro, se o tivesse em meu idioma nativo, sem dúvidas eu o compraria.
Os poemas que me marcaram foram: I am the rage, Human Enough, How You Hate to Rape Me (eu não esperava por algo assim por aqui), America something is wrong e Today I cannot.

I cannot begin to express how much this collection moved me. I Am the Rage is necessary reading. Searing and visceral, Dr. McGowan bears her soul on the page, making it impossible to ignore her experience (shared by many others) any longer. Where the academics will tell you the statistics of racism in America, McGowan makes you feel their effects, her words a mix of the beautifully simple and profoundly philosophic. Pure, raw emotion. Unputdownable.

I received a free ARC and am leaving this review voluntarily...

Growing up in the Caribbean meant that I am aware of the crisis which was slavery which directly affected my ancestors. However, growing up in the Caribbean meant that when slavery was abolished, white people became the minority. That does not mean that discrimination is not still present. However, the discrimination in the US is glaringly obvious for the world to see and as a black person with family members in the US, I'm scared everyday.

I Am The Rage encapsulated that feeling of helplessness so much black people feel in the US. That feeling that no matter what they say or do, they're always judged unfairly and can be killed just because of their skin color. In one of her poems, the author described an experience with the police with a white friend and I was so frustrated at how long it took for the friend to realize what happened.

My favorite poem was "Today I Cannot...." It expressed the futility of doing anything "normal" because of the fact that the author is black. Trying to constantly make sure her posture is suitable for everyone who looks at her as a "monster".

I would definitely try more poetry by this author as her words are real and raw. She spoke her truth unapologetically and I loved it. I also would encourage teens and adults to read this book. Everybody should read this to get an idea of what Black America goes through everyday.

In her words:

"Today I cannot stop thinking about Ahmaud (jogging)
Breonna (sleeping)
Steven (going to work)
George (knelt upon)
Chico (raising his hands in surrender)
And the injustices we have all endured"

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This has been my first collection of poetry and I was blown away by the power of McGowan’s words: compelling, gut-wrenching and heartbreaking portrayal of America today.

If you’re looking for a book that will give words when you don’t have any, when you look back at everything that happened last year a reflection of the past and hopefully not of the future, go look inside this collection. When my words and understanding fail me, I find them here.

The truth is that as a white woman, living in Europe, I don’t know what it’s like and I’ll never know what it’s like to be black and discriminated against because of the colour of my skin. But one thing I can do is listen and try to amplify the voices of those who know, one thing I can do is learn from those who know, one thing I can do is try to protect those who know and fight alongside them.

As I was reading this collection of poetry I tried writing down some of my favourite pieces, but I ended up with a very long list because they are all so good. So here’s a few of my favourite quotes:

“A nation bathed in the idea that whiteness is superior”

“Because someone must still be the lower caste”

“So that we can continue with the detrimental obsession that rightness is whiteness”

“A slave to what makes others feel comfortable”

This was incredibly powerful and poignant; a lyrical portrayal of being Black in America. I appreciated the stories that the poems told, and the messages that Martina McGowan expressed. Some of my favourite poems were:

- Forever Lost between Sunlight and Shadow
- Benediction Number 9
- America's Music (I think this was my favourite)
- A Shocking New Race War
- Traffic Stop
- How You Hate to Rape Me
- BIPOC

Everyone needs to read this book.

It was as if the author was talking to me or I was in the room, at times the grief and anger felt so intimate and intense I could feel the passion and pain through the words.

Really, really well written I can see this going on the school curriculum for English or A level gcse.

I was blown away. At times it made for very hard reading but that's the point. A sit up and think poem anthology but written in a way as if you were being spoken to.

5 stars