Overall, as a body of work, this is a strong collection. However, there isn't enough technical prowess presented in this text to be considered for classroom reading. It's suitable for casual reading.

Sorry, these poems just really didn't work for me. Some of them were alright, but overall, most didn't resonate with me.

4 stars

A beautifully written & heartfelt collection of poems.

[What I liked:]

•There is no fluff; each line & poem means something & has the kind of depth that inspires me to ponder. The words & rhythms are beautiful & musical the way they come together, but these are not empty form over meaning.

•From grappling with the personal pain of racism to reflecting on his spirituality, the poet is open & honest with his experiences in a way that invites the reader in, that allows us to feel something of what he’s feeling. It’s not something every writer is capable of.

[What I didn’t like as much:]

•While I personally was able to connect with some poems more than others (& liked the style of some better than others), I have no major criticisms of this collection!

CW: racism

[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]

When I first saw Brandon Leake on AGT, I became a big fan of his talent. When I heard of Mr. Leake's book Unraveling, I knew I had to read it! Mr. Leake is a gifted and eloquent writer. He writes with passion and of truth. I highly recommend Unraveling by Brandon Leake! I would like to thank NetGalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read this book, My review is also on Goodreads.

Publication date: March 8, 2022
My Thoughts:
I am not a good critic for poetry, as the poems that I like are ones that I have a visceral reaction to, but that reaction comes from different things. It just depends. In other words, I like who I like, but I cannot explain why I trust their poetic voice. What grabs me, though, is when I hear poets read their own pieces. I feel like poets reading their own pieces is part of the visceral package.

With that in mind, I picked up this book because Brandon Leake is the Season 15 winner of America's Got Talent. I know this because the publishers put that down on the cover. I have never seen a whole season of America's Got Talent, but I have seen enough clips to know that a spoken word poet is not the typical act that gets the judges excited, so I needed to request this book.

His poetry is fine, but it sits on the page like the plastic food outside of the Japanese restaurants. It looks real enough, meaning from all outward appearances, they are recognizable as poems. However, I am missing his voice in my head. I don't know how he would read it, and since I am reading this pre-publication, Amazon does not allow me to listen to a snippet. I am guessing, especially since he is a AGT winner, that it is in the delivery, the way he enunciates the words, inserts breath and life into lines, perhaps moves his hands like Amanda Gorman does as if punctuating and pushing essence into the poems, that this is where the corpse of words turns into living material.

From "Living" -

I'm not searching for a new beginning/I'm somewhere in the middle/Not quite hopelessly searching/Yet not quite woefully unearthing/All of these dead parts of me (p.8)

I guess, without having ever heard him read his own work, I too am somewhere in the middle. . .

From the Publisher:
From famous spoken word poet, artistic educator, and founder/CEO of “Called to Move” Brandon Leake comes his debut poetry collection Unraveling. In an era of self love, the ability to love oneself is only as effective as the ability to know oneself. Throughout his collection, Leake asks readers to look at something beautiful, yet still see its flaws. On the flip side, he encourages readers to look at something evil, and yet still see the beauty it holds.

Universally relatable, surprisingly educational, and all around powerful, Unraveling is a collection of poetry inspiring us to slow down, breathe, and read between the lines.

Leake has created a collection of poetry that is filled with emotion and representative of his experience as a human. He does not leave out the obstacles and pain, but uses his words to pave a way for hope. Lyrical and raw, this is a beautiful collection that should not be missed.

Amazing read! I loved all of the poetry. So much passion and I felt a full range of emotions as I read the poems. Definitely buying a copy to add to my poetry library.

I’m far from an expert on poetry, I have no idea what makes it ‘good’ or ‘bad’, I just know whether I enjoyed it or not. Unraveled is a poetry collection that I can definitely say I enjoyed, it was moving, powerful and also beautiful. I didn’t love every poem in this collection but I really enjoyed the majority of them.
Covering everything from depression to religion and being black in America, this was a fantastic poetry collection that I can’t wait to hear the audio version of and will definitely be purchasing and rereading a physical copy of as soon as it’s available!

As far as this e-ARC is concerned, there were a few typos I’m hoping will be corrected before the official release.

A collection of poems, A collection of thoughts. A collection of experiences. The collective experience. Living and Loving. On being black. On being black in America. On being black and dying at the hands of American Injustice. Unraveling.




There is a typo in the third verse of Idiocy, Sheryl suddenly becomes Cheryl. Otherwise a fine work. I found Souf especially poignant.

Beautiful set of poems. I really enjoyed reading poems with AAVE, you can really feel the rhythm in these pieces. Some poems were more relatable to me like Fake Friends. There was a lot of mentions of God and the authors spirituality which I often don’t enjoy, but in this book it was described in a way I can empathise with a respect his craft of language. Also topics that have been important within BLM movements. All this whilst also making poetry accessible and easy to understand. This was a really great read.

I am so different from this poet in all sorts of ways but through his poetry I could appreciate the depth of his world a little bit more.

I had not heard of Brandon before, it was the sticker on the cover that he had won AGT that made me pick it up. So naturally I watched his golden buzzer poem, then a compilation leading up to his win, then picked up this book of poems.

I wish I had gotten the audiobook for sure. That is where my one star less comes in. After seeing and listening to his moving performances, I could read the words, sure , but his emphasis and passion were sorely missed as I read these quietly to myself.

Unraveling caught my eye because of the book cover, so I judged the book by its cover for sure. Then I read Brandon Leake's poetry and to be so vulnerable is hard, so reading the range of his poetry was like diving into the ink that he writes with. The love he has, the cares he shares, the fear he shouldn't have to carry is a lot and Unraveling is all of those things but in words that paint you a picture. I could see how he won AGT, I think it's a phenomenal thing and with good reason, Brandon Leake is a very talented poet of our time.

Becoming a fan of his work after seeing Leake's appearance on AGT told me that I simply HAD to get this book and I wasn't let down! It's such a well written collection of poetry that has his voice tied to every word on every page, a good collection for poetry fans and non poetry fans alike.

I was a huge fan of Leake's when he appeared on "America's Got Talent." I felt like he was so talented and did such an amazing job at making spoken word poetry accessible to millions of Americans. So, I was thrilled to see that he had a collection of his work coming out. There is a little bit of magic lost when you're not hearing Leake actually speak his poems, but his work touches on such important issues that his poems are powerful nonetheless.

I would love for some of these poems to be taught in schools. Their relevance to young men and women (no matter their race) is palpable. I can't wait to read (and hear) more of his poems in the future.

What makes you so afraid of love?
Are you a worn-out soul
Adrift in the vastness of the sky?

Inspiring and thought-provoking, Unraveling by Brandon Leake gave me a LOT of feels while reading at night. It's the perfect read before sleep, you see, I'm someone who couldn't sleep easily at night, my mind occupied with thoughts and ideas. This poetry collection is a nice company for a night of self-evaluation, reflection and healing.

Perfect for fans of Jason Reynolds!

Thanks to Andrews McMeel Publishing through Netgally for my e-arc. *Thoughts and opinions are all mine, this does not affect my review.

trigger warning: racial injustice

This was a great collection of poetry. You could really feel the raw emotion throughout the pieces. They were personal and timely. Overall, it was a good variety but felt very cohesive. I would definitely read another collection by this poet.

Brandon was my favorite AGT contestant from his very first appearance. I am so glad that he won, he really deserved it. Just listening to him speak, you feel something.

This is his first post AGT collection of poems. I thought there were a number of beautiful poems here. They all make you think too. Serious issues are tackled in a way to make the reader think and feel.

When I read a poem, I tend to hear a cadence in my head of how I’d expect the poem to be read. With Brandon’s writing, having heard him do spoken word poetry, I can feel a different cadence than a poem might normally go. Because of that, I think this would be wonderful to have as an audio book too. I’m someone who rarely thinks of the audio book, that prefers the written word, but I feel like I want to hear Brandon speaking these words. He puts a different level of power and execution in what he’s saying than I can when I read it.

I got to read an early ebook edition from NetGalley. I enjoyed the book of poems and would enjoy hearing these read by Brandon.

Brandon Leake is “the voice of the people” in this very contemporary and timely collection. He addresses issues of race and politics in addition to issues close to his heart such as marriage, parenting and faith. This collection of his poetry expresses feelings and thoughts that everyone can relate to, regardless of race, gender or religion. Some poems spoke to me more than others so I think relating to the words and phrases will be a very individual and personal experience for each reader. I think seeing him on AGT also helped bring the works “alive” for me as I could picture how expressive he is when reciting his poetry.