I adore listening to an author read their own work! This book really does get vulnerable AF about love, loss, and just generally being a woman. Connecting with these poems was so easy when it felt like she was talking about my own life.

Tarriona "Tank" Ball makes her debut poetry collection inspired by her own real-life experience with love and heartbreak. The author reads the audiobook and I highly, highly recommend you check it out. It is short but powerful in its execution. Googling Tarriona and finding out she is a recording artist and slam poet makes so much sense, also I want to listen to everything she has ever done and cannot wait to see what she does next.
I do want to get a hard copy or ebook version as well when it releases. There were times listening I wanted to highlight specific moments that left me speechless.

A very well put together and thoughtful audiobook. I could feel the emotion pouring out from the author as she shared each poem. I found the music at the beginning a bit distracting in the first few poems, but as I continued on with the audiobook the music wasn’t included as she was reciting the poetry so I’m unsure if this is something that could change when it’s officially released. Overall this was an enjoyable audiobook and I’m excited to see what the author will write next!

I am undecided on if thoroughly enjoyed this poetry or if I simply enjoyed the soothing tones of it. There was a bit of volume fluctuation with the audiobook that even with the volume turned up to full, I was struggling to catch the last line. Perhaps this is what Ball intended, and urges the listener to pay more attention or perhaps it was an audio flaw.

Since this is an entire collection of poetry, I believe it is alright that each poem was not extremely resonant or sound as I listened to them. However, I did enjoy "Damaged merchandise" and other works towards the conclusion. Overall, I enjoyed how the topic was consistent and I felt as though I was listening to a friend who had reflected fully and often about a relationship spiraling down well-traveled, but unfortunate paths. It was real and authentic which I appreciated, but may not have been the mind-blowing, soul-sticking, revelations I was originally expecting.

A somber tone for sure and I would recommend the audiobook if you want a true picture of the inflection and emotion. Yet, I can't say the collection hit as hard to the brain as I believed it was going to.

Tarriona Ball took me on such an emotional trip. I don't think I have ever wanted to cheer on an author as much as I did reading Vulnerable AF! "Dump, him!", "You deserve way more!", "YOU are the SUN". Ahhh how I delighted with the poem "The Ass".

This collection felt like talking to a girlfriend getting out of a toxic relationship (in the best of ways). It was so fantastic. Evocative, deep, witty. Oh and the delightful play of words *chefs kiss*. Read it!

This debut poetry collection is raw and vulnerable in a way that is so very generous. I was able to read the book in both e and audio form and I enjoyed both. The book is a mix of poetry and story time, read by the author who is herself a Grammy nominated recording artist and spoken word poet.

The whole collection of writings is hyper focused on a single experience of love, desire, and heartbreak from all different angles, and Tank really lets the reader into her brain even as she is speaking to the object of her love and loss.

Her performance background really elevates the audio, allowing a rhythm and musicality to shape the performance of the words. The stories and poems are performed with different cadence, and the whole thing flows smoothly. There are a few moments of feedback or audio hitches, but nothing too distracting, and the poetry is underscored with lovely music.

I highly recommend reading this book while listening to the audio to get the full impact of the writing and illustrations that are also sprinkled throughout.

Thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the ALC.

Vulnerable AF is a bit unusual poetry book. Some poems are very good, and some are ok. But the majority left me neutral, or I didn't like them. The author's narration is very good, and it makes the whole collection better. Piano additions in this poetry audiobook are great and I liked it.

Poetry:3
Narration: 5

Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to listen to this! All opinions are my own.

Whenever I listen to audiobooks I usually like to speedup the playback to get through the story faster, however this one was a pleasure to listen to at regular speed. I have never heard of Tarriona Tank Ball before requesting this audiobook, but now I want to listen to everything by her and her band. The poems were deep, vulnerable, and focused on a range of subjects. I loved the music in the background adding emphasis and expanding the feelings of the words. I enjoy listening to poetry because you get to hear the rhythm and cadence the author/artist felt and chose for each piece. You feel their passion behind each poem and it helps you understand it better. This collection was meaningful and moving.

Vulnerable AF by Tarriona Ball was a beautifully written poetry collection narrated by the author herself, which brings much more depth to the narration. However, I found myself disconnected for the majority of the book which highly affected my enjoyment of the book. The verse sounded more like a post-breakup journal entry than written poetry.

4.5 stars. I hadn't heard of Tarriona "Tank" Ball before this, but this brief collection has made me a fan. She has a really nice sense of metaphor and a nice rhythm to her lines. These poems and prose pieces are about an older relationship that burned bright and then ended....poorly. the poems, like "Sun and Moon Folk" are all about understanding and learning from that:

I used to call you Sun
And I, your Moon
We gave each other such important names
So early in the day
Maybe I can see why you turned eclipse

Never thought that the names would become bigger than the sky
that carried them
I guess you
Didn't want the responsibility of brightening my day in that way
Didn't know that you never wanted to gleam like that
But you should know
I didn't call you Sun with the intent for such a responsibility
I called you Sun because when I saw you...
I shined

I both read this and listened to the audiobook; if you get a chance, listen to Ball read her work. Her emotion and pacing (especially on the prose pieces) are really good!

4 stars for the print book
5 stars for the audiobook

I really liked this collection of poetry. You can hear the vulnerability in the author's words and the self doubt. It is so relatable! There was a part that I could relate to in my own past relationships where she is loving someone so much but not asking for love in return. She calls to the child in all of us that just wants to be loved and held even though the dynamics of the relationship are of a romantic nature they still connect at the deepest level.

My only criticism would be it feels like one long continuous poem instead of individual poems. They are all threaded by the same problems and emotions that without the pause it would be hard to distinguish them.

Overall, these poems are still really good and make you feel all of the emotional turmoil of the author and the erosion of her spirit.

I listened to the audiobook (read by the author) which heightened my enjoyment. These poems read like journal entries turned into poetry. Overall, some are successful and others feel forced.

The first time I heard about Tarriona “Tank” Ball was on NPR tiny desk — wide-eyed, wearing pink banana shorts and a voice that had access to language that described love even though she had never been in love.

The opening line of Vulnerable AF invites us to experience love, the slow decline of it, the possibility of an ending, and the grief after.

The stories throughout are an honest meditation on relationships and their contradictions.

I am immediately thrown into a world that remotely looks like mine but also isn’t. It is a perfect reflection of the human condition as she begins with a declaration- “you don’t know nothing about shame” and she is right because to describe being in love for the first time, feels as though your vocabulary went to war and never quite returned, how do you explain something that feels too foreign yet very familiar?

My favorite thing about the book was the storytelling style — i loved how each poem was preceded by a truth of hers , as if to say — if you ever can relate to this poem; I see you and I hear you.

I would totally recommend this book if you love poetry that shines with honesty.

I listened to this as an audiobook. I usually don't listen to books, but I feel for this slam poetry collection, it is the right choice. Ball's words are simple, but poignant and her voice is certainly what gives life to them. It is short and sweet, and at times I did wish I could see some of the text, but it was altogether a beautiful book; some of the poems resonating more than others, like the short sort of stories. The cover image is beautiful, and I heard there are more images inside that I certainly missed; so I think the ideal way to experience this is to grab both the book and audio. I look forward to reading more from this author.

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Vulnerable AF by Tarriona "Tank" Ball is a beautiful collection about relationships and heartbreak. Her poems/stories are relatable I enjoyed her reflections on the contradictions in relationships. Ball narrates the audiobook phenomenally. She has such a beautiful, expressive voice that really brought her words to life.

Thank you Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing this audiobook and ebook ARC.

3 stars *may change

I'm a big fan of spoken word, keyword /spoken/, so I always have a bit of trouble with the written versions of poems that are so clearly meant to be recited by someone far more talented than I am. I originally read this book in its written form, so I'm really glad to be able to hear it. I thought it was very...well, like any other poetry book when I first read it. But actually hearing it out loud and seeing how the rhyming scheme is supposed to work makes it come to life. I really like spoken word.

In Vulnerable AF, Tarriona Bell discussed her experience with relationships and love. I would recommend this one for young women dealing with a recent break up. I enjoy audiobooks more when they are read by the author, especially when it’s poetry.

Honest, relatable and rhythmic, VULNERABLE AF is a fantastic book of poetry. I liked the music it was set to but sometimes the volumes were a bit off and I struggled to hear the poetry words over the music.

I’m looking forward to seeing what comes next from Tarriona Ball!

You might think this is a book about only heartbreak and a man, but this book of poems is so much more than that. I could relate to every word that the author wrote and it touched my soul. This was a great debut. I thought the author did an amazing job narrating this book and you could feel the passion she exuded in each word she spoke. Thank you to Tarriona Ball, Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for an early audio copy of this book.