I keep wishing Brenda Shaughnessy will click with me, but there some kind of barrier in her work. I talk a lot to my students about finding entrances into poems, and I don't feel as many in Shaughnessy's work, as if there were a kind of deliberate fence.

Once we look inside, explore everything that we hope for which earns the highest virtue of all. The poem ‘Tanya’ by Brenda Shaughnessy is an optical, far-sighted reverence poetry. The Elements which it provides with figures of speech are immensely revealed through rhymes, alliteration, metaphors, etc. it has embraced the literary style that is how it functions. The role of females acquiring the essence of multitasking is not new it has been demonstrated for long eons. The very existence queried the monopoly of the dominant society which has been lurching out for centuries is an irony. It truly aspects and renders the mixtures of past, present, and future. The truth about the destination where it can lead. Companionship is where ‘she stands’ the best. Tanya's word defines a fairy queen in real life cause the poet is not less than the title. The poet indeed knows when to cherish or blow the air to feel enamored.

The artistic caliber has shown various forms of emotions in this poem which is explorable without being ashamed of any taboo set by the dominant society. Life happens itself and the story, the poem, and the novel continue these legacies throughout the generations. The intensity of the poem is subtle enough to make anyone mesmerize to seek in life. The love it blossoms is undeniably robust. The intricate steps it goes and comes forward through various hurdles shining as an Evening star is quite comprehensible.

The specific entries of the poems are (which I learned the most from) ‘Moving Far away’, ‘She Stands’, etc. The Poem out-stands the normalcy when females are looked down upon. The intrigue characteristic limelight the intricate structure of the poem triplets. There’s more to learn and excel in because there is more to come or yet to come.

2 out of 5 stars

I could just not get into this, which usually doesn't happen to me when it comes to poetry. I usually give DNF's 2 stars so that is what I am doing.

Beautiful, evocative poetry. Every poem felt different, each unfolding a new, vibrant world with each turn of the page.

**I received an eARC on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

**Some quotes may not match the final copy found in the published book**

Brenda Shaughnessy is a new name to me, but I'm also painfully new to the poetry scene. I wasn't a fan of the beginning (it felt long and drawn-out), but the more I read, the quicker pace and the constant poetic tools kept me engaged until I finished the collection in one sitting.

TANYA encompasses women and how they shaped the narrator but also how they shape us as the reader, fellow women, and lost lovers. Yes, our mothers, sisters, and aunts guide and love us, but what about the women we meet throughout life? Is our love for other women platonic, sexual, intellectual? Can it be all three or none of the above? As a late-booming bisexual woman who realized her sexuality after marrying a man, the various relationships Shaughnessy paints drew me into different pieces of my past and made me question a lot of my "friendships."

That is to say, the narrator doesn't stop with romance between women. Mentorship is the highlight of "Coursework," the second part, and it further dissects the adoration we feel for each other in a realization that a woman who isn't our mother can shape us into the woman we want to be, without the expectation to be better that her. Rather, it's a focus to be better than your past self, even if you don't feel like you're better.

"I'm beloved for being art's best worst idea." The insecurity that society shoves on us for being women and feeling our emotions and seeking out that human connection in others and within ourselves when we've forgotten to love ourselves is rampant in the narrator's collection. Yes, she accepts herself and her writing, but she can also hate herself and her writing, and they're both valid sides of the same coin, and despite their countered beliefs, can coexist.

The alliteration and internal rhyme schemes create a musical glint to the words, and while some poets write lyrically and sound like folk songs, Shaughnessy comes off as a rapper on the underground scene, her words flying off the pages in anger and frustration as often as they do in adoration and thankfulness. The narrator remarks that the poet still works slowly despite the musician's constant turn out of new material, but this is again countered by the speed at which the words fly off the pages and into themselves like an orchestrated train wreck that we don't see for its synchronized beauty until we've reach the final period.

"Time can't erase it but I can." The narrator argues with time itself as they overcome love lost both in living and within the pages of letters never sent. She says that she "holds their death inside my living love," insinuating death is only a physical change, and that people can die while their love lives forever, at least until the last person who loves them also meets with them in depth. As someone who has done a lot of loving after death, this poignant line sold me on every line in the manuscript.

The writing is clever and would be even more beautiful in an audio book to hear the flow of alliteration and emotions. I loved this collection, and now I'm searching for Shaughnessy's older works to see how they've withstood the passing of time and more time.

Maybe I’m not the target audience for this? I didn’t vibe with it. It felt very pretentious. Only giving 3 stars instead of 1 bc a few lines were really good

I am in literal awe with this book. Have you ever feel like your heart being thorn into pieces by several lines of words that just resonate with how you're feeling in that exact moment? Well, this poetry book is one of that type of book that hit you harder when you experience the almost the same exact thing with the author.

The writing is phenomenal and have a nice touch that make it distictive from other poetry book.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book.