I loved this book of poems so much! These are fun, heartwarming, hysterical and touching. If you're a Kate Baer fan, you will love these. I saved so many poems and pages, and I have it preordered and am excited for a physical copy to reread.

I found these poems interesting but more like thoughts on paper rather than complete works. I am sure this would be enjoyable to others though!

Sometimes I don’t feel smart enough to enjoy poetry. And sometimes I LOVE it, and feel like I am so understood.

This was such a fantastic collection. If you want to try to get into poetry, this collection is approachable and enjoyable!

Bravo! This book of poetry is so relatable and touching. I laughed, smiled, and got teary. Beautifully done. I’m already looking forward to more from Lyndsay Rush.

Thanks @netgalley @stmartinspress and @maryoliversdrunkcousin for the chance to read A Bit Much before its debut on September 17, 2024.

Have you ever been told you’re a bit much? Then this is the poetry collection for you. Told with Lyndsay’s signature wit, the 140 poems will make you laugh and cry and groan in recognition. It’s organized by emotions/vibes, which I loved. Lyndsay has the ability to capture the hope and pathos of our modern times perfectly like when she writes the poem equivalent of “look for the helpers” in “In Florida, an Invasive Snail Is Helping Save an Endangered Bird.” She writes that “right this very minute someone, somewhere is holding the door open for a stranger/ conceding the parking space/ calling their mom back/ letting love override their long-held beliefs…”

Pre-orders really help debuts, so don’t forget to get your copy!

A Bit Much is a collection of beautiful poems by Lyndsay Rush.

I have long followed her on instagram and I am a proud sharer of the poems she has posted there.

This books is a wonderful continuation of her content from instagram.

I look forward to purchasing the physical book so that I can highlight the pages!

These poems were not my cup of tea. They feel like diary entries more than anything else. Lyndsay Rush is an interesting poet, but prose-wise, I didn't like how the poems came off as hokey and mediocre. I absolutely love poetry, but modern poetry seems to be lacking substance and intrigue. If you like silly and inspirational poetry, then you might enjoy this.

Lindsay Rush gained popularity on Instragram as maryoliversdrunkcousin for her fun, uplifting, sometimes snarky poetry. That all comes through with her published poetry collection. I think there’s an interesting question here about context: do poems that work on the internet necessarily work on the page?

Personally, I had a hard time separating the poems in the book from their original context. I felt like I was reading internet poems. If you’ve followed Rush on social media, the poems have everything you already know and love about Rush’s voice, with some of her biggest hits, such as the titular poem. This collection is easy to read. The messages are clear and empowering.

I read a poem about Rush’s niece accompanying her to the airport after a visit while I was spending time with family in my hometown. To my surprise, my two-year-old nephew said he wanted to ride in the car as my mom dropped me off at the airport at the end of my visit. The poignancy of that synchronicity will probably stick with me more than anything else, but I’ll be eager to return to this collection when I want a little nugget of uplift.

Recommended as a gift to your best friend. your sister, or yourself.

I absolutely loved A Bit Much. Rush created poetry that feels relatable and fresh, which is something that I often struggle to find when reading a poetry collection. My personal favorites in the collection were "Code Red," "All of the Awkward Things I Missed During the Pandemic," "Basically an Archaeologist," "Almond Joys," and "The Darkest Day of the Year." I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys poetry that feels a bit fun, but also cuts to the melancholy feelings that all of us have.

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC.

As someone who sees herself as "a bit much" this was just a delightful collection of poems. I read a few at a time and I'm already thinking about how I want to annotate a physical copy.

If you follow Lyndsay on Instagram you'll like these little ditties and even if you don't there's something for everyone in here. Flip open and read at random or they're organized in four section by emotions and go to one you need that day.

Thank you for putting these words out in the universe. If this is what reading poetry is like these days, then sign me up for some more!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm probably the target audience for this, Lyndsay Rush's debut poetry collection, A Bit Much, but I didn't connect strongly with it. Known on Instagram as @MaryOliversDrunkCousin, Rush has published now a collection of 140 poems, including titles like "Shedonism," "Someone to Eat Chips With," and "Breaking News: Local Woman Gets Out of Bed." Through these poems, Rush tackles themes like questioning whether or not to have children, roasting the patriarchy, and redefining what it means to "age gracefully." There is some relatability and cleverness here, but the style is still "Instagram poetry," characterized by short, impactful phrases that sometimes blur the line between poetry and prose. It doesn't feel like there is a strong tie to any poetic tradition here, which is what I really love in a poetry collection. But if you're just getting into poetry, or looking for something that captures the experience of millennial life in the post-pandemic world, this might be for you.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to review a temporary digital ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

I've never felt more seen or spoken directly to than I do reading Lyndsay's "She's a Bit Much" or "It's called Maximalism, Babe" or even just her IG threads - hit 'em with the razzle dazzle 24/7! Her poems are the things I wish to tell my friends and family, about themselves, about me, and about our relationships. I will never get over her and hope we can eat chips together one day! maryoliversdrunkcousin 4ever!

Shelf Awareness PRO: Every page of Lyndsay Rush's debut poetry collection, A Bit Much, sparkles with the same clever energy and sly sense of humor she brings to her popular Instagram account, @maryoliversdrunkcousin. "This is a book about fun and feelings," she writes in the introduction "and, occasionally, potato chips." A Bit Much delivers on that promise--and then some--with poems that invite joy and reflection on every page, delivered with a wink, a nod, and a bit of wordplay sure to delight as much as it will inspire. "Whether we like it or not, some things take time: intricate pastries, building credit, Zoom meetings, balayage/ .../ and remember that, of all the things you should never postpone/ make sure joy is at the top of the list."

Rush notes in the introduction that she had not considered herself a poet until she came to realize that for her, "a poem is simply a joke with an epilogue." This approach makes her work accessible (and funny), with the title of each poem providing the key necessary to unlock deeper meaning. In "Mermaid in America," she muses on the cultural narratives around her knees (the "most troublesome area" of her own body). "Like Trying to Hold a Snowflake" is a reminder to pay attention, "so I can grab the moment/ as it falls/ and make sure/ its magic soaks into/ my skin."

Rush plays with form, too, as much as words. Some poems, like "Wet n Wild Geese (After Mary Oliver)," are loosely inspired by words of other famous poets and imbued with Rush's sense of the world: "You do not have to be good/ at makeup./ You do not have to walk on your knees/ for a hundred miles through a Sephora, repenting." She also experiments with erasure poetry, poems without traditional line breaks, lists as poetry, and more.

A Bit Much is loosely organized by theme (love, revelations, confidence, comfort); across this structure, Rush ruminates on body image, self-care, leaving a dogmatic religion. She encourages a reframe ("It's not a vending machine,/ it's an arcade game/ you always win") and invites presence ("Sounds holy, if you ask me,/ to be sold on life as-is/ to just exist"). Individually, each poem here is packed with wit and wisdom; collectively, A Bit Much is a tribute to finding the fun and the funny in the hard parts of life--and to the ways poetry can facilitate that discovery. --Kerry McHugh, freelance writer

Shelf Talker: This clever collection is as tender as it is wise, inviting readers to find the fun and the funny in the hard parts of life--and discover the many ways poetry can help facilitate that finding.

Thank you to netgalley for the arc of this book of poetry. I simply loved this book of poems - so many of them resonated with me! I found the organization of the book to be done well and I loved the list- type poems. Will recommend to many friends!

I absolutely loved this book of poetry. It was so relatable. Lyndsay Rush uses humor to draw you in, but some of her poems are truly healing to the parts of us that society has tried to stamp down, make smaller. Throughout the book, I laughed, I cried, I adamantly nodded along. I plan to buy a physical copy of this one and return to it again and again to remind myself that I am a bit much, and that is perfectly fine. In fact, it's better than fine. It's magic.

Thank you for the advanced reading of Lyndsay Rush's poetry collection. This book had a lot of heart and captured me with it's witty lines and it's relatable motion of going through adult hood. I would love to read more of her work!

All the extra French fries to the people who finally put Lyndsay’s works into book form! Despite pre-ordering a hard copy on day 1, I have been holding off on reading this ARC, wanting to ration every delightful morsel. Which was silly because these are morsels that will stick. Stick to your bones. Stick to your brains. I can’t wait to keep the hard copy on the coffee table for inspiration as needed.

The wonderful thing about these poems, is that there is something for everyone. More than one, most likely. Even if you don’t fully identify with everything she writes, she manages to capture universal vibes. I’m so, so happy for her that this book exists in the world, and even happier for the rest of us to get to enjoy it.

𝐀 𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐮𝐧, 𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠, & 𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐬 𝐮𝐧𝐚𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟! 𝐈 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐝, 𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐚𝐫-𝐭𝐨-𝐞𝐚𝐫, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐯𝐢𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐥𝐲 𝐧𝐨𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭. 𝑨 𝑩𝒊𝒕 𝑴𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐨𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐈’𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧!

𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓃𝓀 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓉𝑜 𝐿𝓎𝓃𝒹𝓈𝒶𝓎 𝑅𝓊𝓈𝒽, 𝒮𝓉. 𝑀𝒶𝓇𝓉𝒾𝓃’𝓈 𝒫𝓇𝑒𝓈𝓈, & 𝒩𝑒𝓉𝒢𝒶𝓁𝓁𝑒𝓎 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒜𝑅𝒞! 𝒜𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝓅𝒾𝓃𝒾𝑜𝓃𝓈 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓂𝓎 𝑜𝓌𝓃.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my review. All thoughts are my own.
A Bit Much by Lyndsay Rush comes out on September 17th, 2024.
4.5/5 stars, round up.

I first discovered Lyndsay Rush on Instagram and fell in love with her poetry that is funny and witty while also striking a chord. I had a feeling her collection of poems would be incredible and I was not disappointed. It featured both poems that I was familiar with from IG but also many new ones. I particularly loved how she organized the collection by mood/emotion so you could pick and choose what type of poem you were interested in reading.

If you enjoy contemporary poetry then I highly recommend checking this book out!

I haven’t read a poetry collection in awhile that I seemed to relate too. This one I did. It was obvious a heart was being poured out and many times I thought for sure some of these poems were written for me. I enjoyed this poetry collection so much I finished this book in a day. I didn’t want it to end. This is a must read.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Lyndsay Rush for the eARC for an honest review.