It's one of those collections I went into blind but enjoyed. The intersections the poet made created something wholly unique that captured my attention and left me moving through the pages, wanting to unravel more of their words. I've never thought I would like poetry that also lends itself as a love letter to maths, but here we are!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me free access to the digital advanced copy of this book.

One of the standout features of "Swan Hammer" is the raw emotion that runs through the collection. Graber's poems are deeply personal, and she does not shy away from exploring the darker and more difficult aspects of the human experience. The poems are a testament to the power of language to heal and transform, and the reader is left with a deep sense of empathy and understanding.

Another impressive aspect of this collection is the author's skillful use of imagery and metaphor. The poems are rich with sensory detail, and the reader is transported to the landscapes and experiences that inspired them. Graber's use of metaphor is particularly striking, and she has a talent for finding unexpected connections between seemingly disparate ideas and experiences.

Overall, "Swan Hammer" is a beautifully crafted poetry collection that explores the complexities of trauma and the power of language to heal and transform. It is a deeply personal and emotionally resonant collection that will leave a lasting impression on the reader. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a well-written and thought-provoking read.

This collection's use of storytelling was stimulating and emotionally elevating. Graber's smooth ease in shifting from passion to poignancy to apathy to simple musings felt both natural and like a refreshing reflection of my mind's own capriciousness, I also enjoyed the diversity in format and pacing-- a staccato presentation in one poem, and a velvety unraveling in the next. I plan to spend more time with this collection.

i was looking forward to this collection from it's description of "queer millennial in a twenty-first century America defined by the internet, climate crisis, and a growing disconnection".
I liked some of the poems but unfortunately, this collection just wasn't for me... why? the writing style and so much of it feels nostalgic but it didn't manage to made an outsider to the experience of middle US, like me, feel or understand that nostalgia.

“Swan hammer” has a few select poems which hit right where they want to, but others that fall short. Some of the work is heartbreakingly excellent and worth hearing, but others seem repeated and known, or entirely too niche to find a middle ground with.

Swan Hammer is a collection of memories told through places, pop culture icons, and mundane experiences. I love the craft here, and I can see how much Maggie Graber delights in playing with language and stretching it to its limits. However, I feel disconnected from most of the themes and imagery mainly because everything used here is too American for me.

To indulge in a little main-character delusion, I’d say Maggie Graber created Swan Hammer: An Instructor’s Guide to Mirrors with me in mind. Sure, she included a whole poem explaining “Why I Shouldn’t Be an FBI Agent,” but maybe that’s the perfect cover for surveilling a random bisexual who shares your first name and then composing a poetry collection certain to pique her interest! Like, y’all…there’s poems here about Ms. Frizzle, tomatoes, and doing violent things to impress girls.

But even if your name isn’t Maggie and you’ve never emotionally depended upon a fictional science teacher, Graber’s collection charts a familiar ambivalence with the digital and natural worlds we inhabit day to day. Worries about a rapidly changing climate follow memories of the 2012 Mayan Apocalypse. In “iContact / Screens,” the poet reckons with her closest relationship: the “monogamous bond” she has with her phone screen. By the end, readers come to understand the power of all these connections — good, bad, funny, and neutral.

Out in time for the hot stillness of summer, Swan Hammer, winner of the 2021 Wheelbarrow Books Poetry Prize, is equal parts personal history and manual for living. The former comes as odes, elegies, and self-portraits (“Self-Portrait as a Jack-o’-Lantern” and “Self-Portrait as Loan Payment” are stand-outs). The latter arrives in the form of rules, rituals, and prayers.

In one poem, “a bowl of tomatoes burns / like a bonfire” and Graber wonders, “How will we love / when all we’ve buried grows / on vines and tastes unsalted, / like weakening sun?” In “House Rules,” she subverts and deepens the cheesy text-based home décor strung across American suburbia. Later on, “Moonrise Ritual” appeals to anyone battling their subconscious manic pixie dream girl (the trick is to give in! Be your own manic pixie dream girl!). It begins:

Fill a tub with saltwater

and soak your feet for one hour.



Write an apology to the dinosaurs

on behalf of outer space.

Breathe harmonica. Imagine

sleeping in an igloo of sand.

I used to scoff at self-help books. At the belief a stranger could help me out of the muck of life. But lately I’ve caught myself reading things with the intent to learn, to change, to improve. The only difference is I reach for queer memoirs and single-page poems instead of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck. When distraught, I recite “The Peace of Wild Things” until my heart rate slows. If I want to feel punk rock and incredibly feminine, I do the same with Kim Addonizio’s biting “What Do Women Want?”

Graber’s collection, subtitled An Instructor’s Guide to Mirrors, fulfills this craving for benevolent guidance and then some. Maybe, as in the titular poem, the girl who lives inside Graber “knows the way out” for all of us.

This is a good book and I loved it. Its kind of weird but in a good way. These poems are pretty long but still good. Some poems, I am constantly thinking about. Its a very thought provoking. Some confusion in the headings of the poems. They are all meshed together and can't really tell if its beginning or ending. Great book!!

I received the book for free and voluntary writing a review

Swan Hammer delivers a fresh point of view and often proves how clever and thoughtful the poems in this collection are. I struggled a bit to follow the format in the e-arc version, the poems blended together and it was sometimes hard to pull them apart. I will purchase this book when it comes out to give it a proper go.

Thanks to NetGalley and Michigan State University Press for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Swan Hammer is a poetry collection I think that can be categorized as "insta-poetry". Many of the poems discussed Graber's experience as a queer woman, but the poems remained vague and often times felt restless.

I was caught by the very first poem and couldn't put the collection down. Originally, I was drawn to the collection by the pop culture references in the summary, but there is so much more here than just that. Each poem speaks to its own time and place, and was fully immersive. It was a wonderful reading experience that I hope to revisit in the future.

Unlike the wonderful poem from which the collection got the name from, this collection was below average for me. There have only been 3 poems that I liked. A lot of the lyrical instruments used were cringy and unneccesary. I sensed an overwelming need to be different for the sake of being different from this collection. Overall, very dissaointed, although I believe everyone should read Margaret, The four poets, and the swan hammer poem. They are the only reason this recieved 2 instead of 1 star.

This is one of the most engaging poetry collections I’ve read. Every poem told a story and not in the way of some collections, with a lot of vagueness and ambiguity which requires a more experienced or abstract poetry reader to understand. It was beautiful in its straightforward exploration of modernity, life and intimacy whilst at the same time offering a chance to delve deeper into Maggie Graber’s words and take more away from her writing if you want to.

As a bit of a poetry novice, the commentary at the beginning from Sarah Bagby was a great introduction to the collection and insight into the themes of Swan Hammer.

The mix of poems includes haikus, sonnets, odes and more which made each one distinct and demonstrated the poet’s talent for different forms of expression. There wasn’t a poem I didn’t like and I enjoyed the humour and playfulness in the writing, as well as the thoughtfulness and thought-provoking nature of the work.

An incredible collection of poems by a queer genius. This hit me so intimately, and I am so thankful for it having been penned.

Thank you to the publisher for an advanced copy via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Wheelbarrow Books for the chance to read and review Swan Hammer!

I wish I could love Swan Hammer, but I just can't! When it started out I thought this would be amazing, but as soon as I gave the book a break I just couldn't' get back into things. I finished it, but I just couldn't connect with anything.

This may be something I re-read in the future, just to see if I need to read this in a different space to enjoy it.

Unfortunately I did not connect with this book at all. I was surprised when I felt like I was just reading words and nothing seemed to connect. I think that the word I am looking for is that it was not cohesive. Again, as I always say, it could be me as I believe that with poetry is it quite subjective and depends on the experience of the person. Also I feel that if I didn't relate to the poetry written in this book, someone else can be deeply touched by the words written so even though my review is not of a high rating I still encourage you to give it a chance and see for yourself.

Swan Hammer is a really lovely collection of poems. Graber does a wonderful job of gut punches and one liners; poems that make you go back to re-read and saturate yourself in the depths of it. Her style is consistent and while it doesn't stray too far from traditional form there is still a fresh and contemporary feel about it.

My favorite poems are: "The Poet Dreams of Levitation", "Self-Portrait as a Jack-o'-Lantern", and "Would You Rather Sonnet."

This was a good collection of poetry. Nothing stood out to me, but it was an enjoyable read for sure. I enjoyed the thematic tones this took and think the writer did a great job conveying thoughts onto the page.

I really loved the use of the liminal in this collection, and the way the poet tied in math with nature, poetry, and queerness in this collection. There are lines and ideas in this collection that will live rent free in my head, the ode to graph paper and her love of Ms. Frizzle -- especially Kate McKinnon -- and the derby girls who aren't afraid to get black and blue to get real and beautiful.