this is the best and most beautiful contemporary poetry book I’ve read in my life, i loved it beyond words

These poems are short and simple and fit in with a certain trend of very accessible poetry that's popular now. I could feel the emotions the author was trying to provoke, however, none of the poems quite grabbed or surprised me. I think this would be popular with people who are new to reading poetry and want an easy way to try reading it.

Thank you to Andrews McMeel, F.S. Yousaf, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this lovely poetry collection. What first caught my eye was the beautiful cover art. I always take the time to scan through Andrews McMeel's latest offerings on NetGalley because everything they choose to publish turns out to be fantastic. And this did not let me down.

The book contained lovely sketches to match the emotions described in the poems. Beautiful, spare, yet powerful lines that stay with you for days, pulling you back to reread them. I enjoyed the different sections that the book was laid out in, which can be reserved to read on a particular day when one is feeling the need for that specific type of poetry.

I plan to read more of the author's titles in the future. For those who enjoy the work of Rupi Kaur, Amanda Lovelace, R.H. Sin, and Courtney Peppernell, F.S. Yousaf's style is similar.

If you love to read poetry and especially love when poetry moves you, then this book of poetry is the one for you.
I was caught by the start by the poems in this collection.
Bravo.

This poetry collection caught my eye because of the cover. They say to never judge a book by it's cover, but in this case the inside is as beautiful as the outside.

Serenity is a collection of 140 poems by F.S. Yousaf. His work is emotional, modern, simplistic and heartfelt. I felt connected to the words and I've read this book in one sitting. Also, the illustrations are lovely.

Such a beautiful book of poems! At first I struggled to relate to the first few pages of poems, but after a short while I was pleasantly surprised with how much I connected to the words of the poems in the rest of the book. These poems captured the emotions and intricacies of life and living perfectly - sadness, confidence and self-esteem, grief, relationships, love, believing in yourself - even though the words were simple, they painted life so beautifully. This book gave me a chance to slow down, take some breaths, and reconnect with the more simple building blocks that make up this crazy life. Very well written, concepts very clear and beautifully - definitely worth the read!

This caught my eye on NetGalley because it was by a fellow Muslim writer. It has poems with titles like 'Tawakkul', and poems with messages of hope and afterlife grounded in Islamic beliefs. At the same time, others are rooted in the love of creation (your spouse!) to the extent that the poet himself recognizes as being problematic; and then poems on feeling 'whole', and filling the 'void' caused by the absence of a significant other, or by one's own perceived brokenness.

I shared the poem 'Meaning of Destiny' with my husband for his birthday because it fit the context of our pandemic-oriented relationship. The words are sad but bold with phrases like 'I do not fear death taking one of us', as well as beautiful and hopeful: 'the goodbye will only be temporary'.

Other favourites included:
'Belong'; I read it as a reminder that one day I will return to 'the ground that is beneath my feet'.
'Mindfulness'; I loved the encouragement instilled in the phrase 'make the most of what has been placed on your path'.
'You Will Find Yourself' for its beautiful imagery; we're all going exactly where we need to.
'Glory of Spare Moments'; my absolute favourite from this entire collection. It's real, dreary and heavy, and has an ending so uplifting that I forget everything before it: 'I will find how to feel whole for spare moments in time'. For me, those moments come when I am overwhelmed with gratitude to God, for all that I've been given and more.
'Embodying Art' for normalizing feeling many emotions on any given day.
'With Fire Comes Rebirth' for its imagery of the body, and greenery.
'Flux' for breathtaking views, perspectives and sounds.
'Avail' for its simplicity.
'Peace Finds a Way' for asking us to be patient; there is always hope.
'Scatter/Sensible' for speaking about the respite found in your loved ones.
'Ally' for reminding me of those that hold me when I am at my weakest.
'Each Journey Looks Different'; regardless of what you believe, each one of us perceives the world uniquely.

the love this author has for their significant other is so apparent. i felt like it was embracing me, i felt loved in a way. this collection of poems was great. i’ve never felt this way while reading poetry before.
all these poems about growing together and separately as people were so beautiful. i also loved how it was a recurring theme throughout the way the lover always runs their hands through the authors hair.<3
my favorites were definitely your voice will have a home, change is needed, and a smile as bright as the sun.

Thank you for an arc in exchange for an honest review! First off, I love the cover and the artwork inside the collection. However, I wasn’t a fan of the poems, as many of them felt surface-level and I didn’t connect with them. People who like more modern poetry may like it more, but it wasn’t my cup of tea.

Poetry is a difficult thing to review because it's so personal, and it resonates with different audiences. Unfortunately, this collection of poetry didn't resonate with me. I didn't feel a connection to any of the pieces in it, and felt that many of them were repetitive.

The accompanying illustrations were lovely, however, and I feel that the book should include more of them. Perhaps this just wasn't the time in my life for these poems.

There were a few poems that I especially loved, but overall I felt like many of these poems were not particularly memorable and I didn't get too much feeling and emotion coming from the page. I got a sense of theme of trauma and relationship issues, but other than that I didn't get too much from this collection.

I liked it but didn't love it.

However, I did LOVE all the the drawings in this collection, I just wish they appeared more frequently. It was one of my favorite parts of this collection.

3/5 stars

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

Serenity is a book of poems which are emotional and moving and of which I found vert relatable. This I'd the first book of poetry by F S Yousaf that I have read and I will be looking to read more.
The book itself is sectioned in to three parts - Acceptance, hope and Tranquility. I read this book cover to cover and enjoyed every page. The scattering of illustrations through the book were simple yet detailed and matched well to the poems they accompanied.
If your looking for simplistic, moving and heartfelt poetry, definitely check this book out.

This poetry collection suffers from the confiding rules of modern poetry. It reststrics itself to fragments of thoughts and love notes.
The author has potential to write more whimsical and flowy poemsn which I hope I can witness in the future.

‘What’s the reason you keep on living? / Because there may be happiness written for me tomorrow, and if not tomorrow, then perhaps the day after.’

reading this collection was like inhaling a breath of fresh air. each poem is altogether tender, eloquent and serene, and the authors consideration to detail is evident on every page. the poems in this collection primarily centre around themes of love, hope and tranquility, and totally tug at one’s heartstrings. what i loved most about this collection, though, was the writers attention to the complexities of human connection, and the way human emotions are explored through links to nature.

would highly recommend to readers who enjoy poetry by rupi kaur, yrsa daly-ward and nayyirah waheed. as with the authors previous collection (which i also enjoyed reading), this book also features delicately drawn sketches which i think add a perfect visual touch to the poems !

many thanks to andrew mcmeel publishers for my netgalley e-arc. i really enjoyed this :)

This collections has been edited beautifully and laid out with sparse but appropriate illustrations.

Serenity is a deeply moving collection of poetry. The tugs of angst and love are strong, however as a jaded middled aged grandmother the poetic ideal of perfect love matches weren't for me. However, the poetic language was deeply appreciated, and I found the flow of reading through unbroken by any shifts in rhythm or form. A delightful read and one I would recommend to anyone insisted in modern poetry.

These poems were hard to get through for me, mostly because I couldn’t connect with the writing. It was hard to tell what the message was that the author was trying to get across.

Thank you Netgalley and F.S. Yousaf for this ARC. All the poems in this book are very beautiful. It made me feel good and recollect the sweet memories that I have with my loved ones. It is about love, acceptance, hope and tranquility. I highly recommend this poetry book.

A perfect read for the new year. First I want to take a moment to appreciate the beautiful cover of this book-the image, the colors.. it really does compliment the book. The poetry is absolutely beautiful. It made me long, it made me smile, it made me remember how much I admire about him, a guy I enjoy spending time with. It also hit home where on days I don’t feel love for myself, going through a depression is both a struggle and a hard process, but I feel I want to spread love to people so they don’t have to feel what I am going through. Absolutely love this poetry collection. I would definitely recommend!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishing team for this ARC!

This book was so lovely! I follow the author on Instagram and was delighted to see this up for reading.

I enjoyed the way he wove his words. They were simple yet touched my heart in such an intimate way! I loved the messages found in it and really enjoyed seeing the artwork included. I've been disappointed by poetry books this year but this one isn't one of them! My last read of the year and an excellent way to finish.

A lovely collection of poetry for fans of Rupi Kaur and Amanda Lovelace. The book had an uplifting, hopeful voice throughout. I wish the poetry took a few more risks, or dug deeper into the feeling or image presented. Overall, it wasn't for me, but I'd recommend it to a friend. Thanks Netgalley for the ARC!