Beautiful and raw poetry that shines a light on Black youth. Well written, impactful, a shocking and powerful debut collection of poetry.

This collection of poetry was amazingly powerful. Every piece that Darius writes is so full of real emotion, and it's easy to feel the writer's pain as well as the suffering of the communities that are discussed. I feel that many readers will be enlightened by this and for those who want to get a better understanding of how it is to be black in America this is a recommended piece of reading.

Thank you Button Poetry and NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book.

Thank you to Button Poetry, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

Darius Simpson is a gifted writer. The poems in this book are powerful and at times, brutal. They are eye-opening and necessary. While I enjoyed many of them and bookmarked several, I also found them all to be pretty despairing. Yes, racism is alive and well in America, but literally millions of Black people are working relentlessly for change every day. I didn't feel any hope or any recognition of the change-makers.

Simpson's poetry is raw, powerful and utterly necessary. He encapsulates the pain and the struggles of the Black community in modern and eclectic prose, using style and using it well to get his point across. Poetry is personal, and sometimes it doesn't resonate with readers who don't share lived experiences with the poet. That isn't the case here though, because Simpson's words have a way of getting under your skin, and they stay with you. I don't think anyone can get through this collection without feeling both angry and devastated. Probably one of the best collections I've ever read, and I highly recommend this to everyone.

Thank you Button Poetry and NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book.

I'm having a hard time figuring out where I want to place this book. Honestly, my review may change after I re-read this one.

I do think that Darius Simpson has written some really interesting poems in this book. I was personally a big fan of pieces like A Glossary of Terms and A Poem in Which We Shoot Back. While I'm probably not in the best space to review his work, I can tell you that this is a solid writer. I wasn't a big fan of the cover though.

I also didn't realise that people who were pro-Palestine could actually be published. I feel like I read a significant amount of poetry and I haven't come across anyone who actually wrote something like that down this year.

The first word that comes to my mind when describing Darius Simpsons work is "powerful".
Theremhas not been one text in this collection that did not make me feel something.
As different as they might be, all of the texts depictna very clear and unsettling picture while using modern poetry in unexpected yet always fitting ways.
If you ever wondered, would this work fit into your collection and was is worth rereading, this one is a strong yes.
As sad as it is, Simpson captures the needs of our society and forces to ma,e the reader look into a mirror.

this poetry collection was so powerful! I took my time while reading it just so I could fully absorb all of the words and all of the impact that they had. This book was enlightening and so important I love this book with my whole heart as well as everything that I learned.

This book was incredible I have ls over this book, I really took my time with it to really get a grip on the poems, I honestly really enjoyed it while I didn't enjoy all of them I enjoyed most of them and was so happy that I could read this early.

This was so deeply inspiring and touches on a range of subjects that mean a lot to a lot of people. One of my favorites is I Left The Church In Search of God.

This collection of poetry was just meh for me. I didn't love it, I didn't hate it. I wouldn't recommend it to others.

READ THIS collection of poetry now! Read it and pass it around for others to read!

I really, really, really loved this collection of poetry. It was bold, honest, entertaining, loving, insightful and inspiring. Darius Simpson has a gift. I am so glad he is also a teacher. This poetry collection is what is needed in classes more, enough of the likes of W.H Auden and more poets like Darius and Daenez Smith. I cannot wait to analyze and reread this collection soon. I will make sure to BUY a print copy and tell everyone about it. Fuck 12 and white supremacy.

A huge thanks to Netgalley and Button poetry for giving me an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

"i love my people.
i protect and serve my people."

I am a huge fan of poetry and this collection did not disappoint, there is such raw emotion in every piece that Darius writes, I was completely engrossed and shocked at the situations throughout and just cannot comprehend the pain that those from these communities feel. Thank you for such honest and heart breaking writing, but also thank you for speaking up and out. I highly recommend this!

I loved this collection of poetry! I'm normally not a big poetry person, but I decided to give this book a chance and I don't regret it. Darius Simpson did an amazing job of encapsulating the Black experience into well-crafted lines of prose. He unapologetically expresses thoughts that others would normally be afraid to say. Overall, this is a 10/10 book and I would highly recommend it!

Wow. What a powerful collection of poetry this was. Some of them gave me literal goosebumps and made me feel SO many emotions. This book is so important.

Amazing writing by this author. Each poem speaks to the soul like a bowl of gumbo. All the write ingredients mixed together the the taste of black soul. No matter who reads this writer's book, everyone can taste and see how good it is.

So powerful and so Important. As a white perusing this was such an enlightening read and I was reduced to tears more than once. If you want to truly understand what it’s like to be Black in America this is the book for you.