✨ Review ✨ Poūkahangatus by Tayi Tibble
I don't read a lot of poetry, but I was hooked in by this amazing cover and the name pronounced Pocahontas. Tibble reflects throughout the poems on identity, representation, gender, culture, and so much more. The opening essay about "Indigenous Hair Dos and Don'ts" pulled me in as she waved between Māui, Greek, and Christian beliefs as well as the Pocahontas Disney movie, the Pussycat Dolls, and more. I really enjoyed these poems -- many went over my head like all poetry does, but so many also resonated and brought me feelings.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: poetry
Pub Date: July 26, 2022

Thanks to Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and #netgalley for a copy of this book!

The poetry collection is lovely, full of poems that are of varying lengths, styles, and content, but all woven cohesively into one narrative and collection. "They are the color / of a cosmic heartbeat" is so lovely. The author also uses repetition in a lovely way, following the narrative: "could you be more specific." She tells the stories of family, friends, lovers, and cruelty.

Tayi Tibble is a young poet as she explores her identity as a twenty-first-century Indigenous woman.

I loved the mix of poetry and the author's cultural life experiences.
Some of my favorites were 'Long White Clouds', 'Vampires vs Werewolves' and 'Scabbing'.
It was a great read and Tayi is obviously incredibly talented, can't wait for her next book.

If you love reading poetry by Rupi Kaur, read this one!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Knopf Publishing Group for allowing me the opportunity to get an early copy of this novel!

This stunning collection is one of my faves. Tayi Tibble is a force of nature and she takes it with her into these poems. They clap back thunderously, jagged edges giving way to vulnerabilities like soft rain fall after the clouds crack. The poems weave the personal into a wider history; to be a girl in the city, a wahine Māori in Aotearoa in the wake of colonisation. Can’t recommend this enough!

This was a very interesting collection of poems. And very easy read for anyone who wants to pick it up. Was nice to see from a different culture and life experiences.

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is 4.5 stars rounded up. What I liked about these poems is that they are simple (almost anyone can read it and understand, which I think is a good thing) while maintaining enough intricate details that require further education. I’m indigenous, but to the USA. Potawatomi, specifically. I was drawn to this book because I wanted to see poems where we differed and where we are alike. I felt that the heart of these poems touched my own. It was a great read and Tayi is obviously incredibly talented.

I hesitated on the full five stars because I wanted just a tiny bit more depth on a select few poems. Some of them felt obscure and too unique to the author that I was struggling to understand the meaning and intent on a full scale. I don’t mean it lacked depth in intent for the author, only that it didn’t reach a depth that felt like it spoke to others as well. I think that’s alright, overall, because a collection of poems doesn’t always need to ring true for everyone or have some layer of relatability, but those poems felt a bit guarded. Like we were only given the surface.

As a whole, I loved this collection. I loved getting to hear of Tayi’s culture which is unfortunately so foreign to me. Through these poems I did feel like it isn’t as foreign as I initially thought.

Some of my favorites were “Ode to Johnsonville’s Cindy Crawford,” “Long White Clouds,” “Takeaways,” “Vampires vs Werewolves (my absolute favorite),” and “Scabbing.” These poems all really spoke to me and I think are such beautiful pieces of art. Loved them so much! Normally I’m not a huge fan of prose poems, which seems to be Tayi’s forte, but these were all lovely and fast-paced, which I loved.

I will be recommending this collection to everyone.

Beautiful collection, immensely creative. It's hard to review such a special book but what I can say is that i enjoyed it, i could see a lot of intention in each poem, the way it was constructed, written, everything felt so personal and I adored it.

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf for the chance to read and review this book!


I think the blurb on Goodreads kinda says it all. That this is a take on being a young woman and all the different identities that come into play. Between the harmless fantasies 'Scabbing’ and ‘The Pussycat Dolls’ to the fetishization of ‘Starless Nights in Washington.’ You have childhood memories of mothers mortified and amused (The Burial.) and you can see the fate of those older than you (Assimilation).

This was such an interesting poetry collection!

I loved the mix of poetry genres from the author but also the mix of narrative when it came to the author's life experiences!

Gorgeous. Utterly bewildering. Passionate. This collection of poems sums up the unrealistic expectations this society places upon women and the hope to get through them. Also, it's a debut which really shook me given how it's brilliant and well known poets want to establish such a relationship with their readers but Tibble did it with fun, honesty and warmth. Poukahangatus has definitely left a mark on me and i can't wait for more of Tibble's work<3

This book of poetry was lovely and had wonderful imagery. I learned a lot about the Maori experience, and the author depicts various situations throughout childhood, adolescence, and motherhood.

Uniquely emotional and proud, Poukahangatus gives such imagery that it's almost overwhelming, in a good way. It feels new and untouched but abrupt. It was refreshing yet comfortable. This collection definitely left a mark on me, and will likely do the same for anyone who happens upon it.

Thank you, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, for the advance reading copy.

More of a too passionate in the writing about being born a woman who is experiencing the world's unrealistic expectations and presumptions on women, the content is a mix of short paragraphs and insta poetry. I love the paragraphs more and I do feel the author shines in this area. I couldn't make out much from the poetry parts. But I can feel the angst and the humour from both.

A good debut I would say.

If you love reading poetry by Rupi Kaur and Amanda Lovelace, you can go for this collection.