This is a nice collection but nothing that makes me go ahh ohh. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for this free eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

A nice collection of poems.
I liked some better than others, but it was a nice read. I’d give it 3-3,5 out of 5 stars.

The natural world contains some beautiful imagery from nature and some though provoking impactful works on love and life which i feel will have something that reaches everyone on some level, however as a whole I found the collection as an entire piece a trifle disjointed and awkward.
I think this is probably 2 sections of work blended but not smoothly and probably would have been better as 2 separate editions.
That said i think An Autumn Dell is beautifully written and for me definitely the stand out work in the collection .

Overall, a really good poetry collection. Nature poetry is one of my top favorite subjects to read about in poems so I obviously liked those the most.

Este libro contiene muchos poemas de naturaleza, algunos de amor y otros sobre distintas cosas. También hay un poema de misterio.
Algunos de estos poemas me hicieron derramar una lágrima, y otros me impresionaron con su habilidad técnica.
Pero también hay algunas debilidades. Algunos poemas parecen no decir nada, y muchos otros se ven afectados por finales débiles. "El Río Antiguo" tiene un último verso que parece venir de la nada, casi arruinando el poema. "Música en Invierno" se debilita cada vez más a medida que avanza. Muchos otros también sufren por finales flojos.
En general, creo que es un libro bastante bueno y hábilmente escrito.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This contains many nature poems and some love poems, and also poems about other things. And a mystery poem.

The mystery, The Restoration of Frost, is slightly unsatisfying as a mystery, but is a nice poem. It has several really good lines, and some pretty funny ones. “Time never brought wisdom, only made me old.” is one that stands out.

The nature and love poems both vary in quality- the best of them I would give 4.25 stars, and the worst 2 stars- but those are rare.

Some of these poems made me shed a tear, and some impressed me with technical skill.

An Autumn Dell gives a beautiful picture of nature, and has a lovely line- calling frogs ‘as mournful as remembrance’. Coming Home and New Spring are both love poems which evoked great emotion in me- such a beautiful thing to say that past memories ‘will hold a wistful mind at ransom’. Old Charts is a wistful, hopeful, lovely thing. And there are many more almost as good.

But there are some weaknesses too. Some few poems just seem to say nothing, but more are kneecapped by weak endings. The Ancient River has a last line that comes out of left field, almost spoiling the poem. Music in Winter gets weaker and weaker as it goes. Many others also suffer from weaker endings.

There are some words which appear in multiple poems, which is a bit of a jarring experience if you're not used to them beforehand. Scudding, quotidian, and gloaming come to mind.

On the whole I think this is a pretty good and skilfully written book.

3.5 stars.

A vivid, almost spiritual journey into the world of beauty and poetry, the natural wonders of the human experience.

I don't read a lot of poetry though I usually try to read some in April for National Poetry Month. I've mentioned before that during the pandemic I tried my hand at writing nature poems - one turned out pretty good. So when I saw a book was coming out that featured nature poems, I thought I would give it a try.

This book is a collection of 59 poems (my count since there isn't a table of contents in the ARC) written by David Murphy. I'm not familiar with this poet's work but I enjoyed several of the poems in the book.


They are not all nature poems. There are a number of poems about love and some just about life. I enjoyed the poems about nature the best but appreciated the other poems. "Bees" was one of my favorites as is it brought in some some science about the life cycle of bees. "Mayfly" was another favorite for its use of language and its comparison. I particularly liked the thought-provoking ending "why, then, should we give our prime to anything but what is dearest to our hearts?"

The poems take a variety of forms - most I'm not familiar with. There is a section in the front of the book entitled forms that gives a list of the various types of poems found in the book. The ones I was familiar with - haiku, ode (who hasn't read Ode to a Grecian Urn by John Keats), and sonnet (which always makes me think of Shakespeare). There is also rondeau, sestina, terza rima, and villanelle.

The last poem is what I would consider a short story told in verse. "The Restoration of Frost" is the terza rima example. I looked up terza rima, and Wikipedia tells me it is a "poem... consists of tercets (three-line stanzas) with an interlocking three-line rhyme scheme".

The poem is a murder mystery with undertones of a hard-boiled detective novel. It was very well done and an enjoyable story, but I was also impressed that this form was used to tell a complete story.

Whether you are fan of poetry, or like me and dabble in it from time to time, this is definitely a collection worth picking up.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Thursday (10/3) - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2024/10/the-natural-world-by-david-murphy-review.html

Poetry is a very personal thing, it either touches you or it doesn't. If it doesn't, it is just not for you, it will speak for the next reader. This selection was not for me. Even though my world is the natural world, I just found that most of the poems were words and images running on with no clear thought or meaning. I thank NetGalley and Dreameyrie for the advance read.

Beautifully written poems that take me on a journey through the gorgeous seasons. Through a sea of love and the oceans currents you'll get lost in these well constructed poems. #TheNaturalWorld #NetGalley

I enjoyed the introduction of this book and felt that the poetry was very well written. Unfortunately, based on the description and introduction, this book did not meet my expectations. While I do think it is well written, the repetition of some motifs began to feel monotonous. Additionally, some poems are raw and emotional, while others come off as overly abstract or cryptic. Ultimately, this book left me wanting more. While I appreciate the effort and intention behind the collection, it didn’t resonate with me as I had hoped.