While I have The Copenhagen Trilogy on my shelf I haven't had the opportunity to read it yet, so this was my first foray into the work of Tove Ditlevsen.
There Lives A Young Girl In Me Who Will Not Die is a collection of selected poems from across the career of Danish poet and author Tove Ditlevsen. I thoroughly appreciated this volume, which was greatly enhanced by the foreword and afterword which explained the structure and restraint of her chosen form, as well as some of the struggles of Ditlevsen's difficult life.
Ditlevsen's poetry is candid in subject, with language that is deftly handled and expertly executed. The poetry has recurring themes that touch on a variety of her experiences from childhood—through love, husbands, children, disillusionment, loss, and despair.
The titular poem was, indeed, one of many highlights for me. I highly recommend this wonderful, dark and powerful collection of poems by Tove Ditlevsen if you are a lover of poetry from Anne Sexton, Sylvia Plath, or just poignant poetry detailing a woman's experience.

Thank you to NetGalley, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, and the Author's Estate for access to an eARC. All opinions are my own.

There Lives a Young Girl in Me Who Will Not Die is a stunning collection of selected poems spanning the career of Danish poet and author Tove Ditlevsen.

This was my first time reading Ditlevsen’s work, and I can’t help but feel as though I’ve been missing out on years of vulnerable, raw beauty. Yet, I like to believe her poetry found me at the perfect moment in my life.

Ditlevsen’s style evolves across the years, creating the sense of growing up alongside her words and experiences. This collection is both intimate and expansive, offering glimpses into her life through recurring themes of childhood, love, loss, family, self-reflection, heartache, and melancholy. The candor of her voice, paired with her masterful use of language, makes her poetry deeply affecting.

There’s a sharpness to her work that reminded me of my long-time favorite poet, Edna St. Vincent Millay. I’d also recommend Ditlevsen’s writing to fans of Anne Sexton and Sylvia Plath, as they share a similar ability to distill raw emotion into unforgettable lines.

Her poems hold immense power, often packing an emotional punch in just a few words or lines. I found myself highlighting so many passages, unable to pick a favorite. Ditlevsen’s ability to balance darkness with glimpses of beauty and joy is remarkable, though her lingering sadness is palpable throughout. Knowing the poet’s tragic end adds a layer of poignancy to the collection, making it all the more haunting.

This book left a lasting impression, and I’m eager to explore more of Ditlevsen’s work.

Thank you to NetGalley and FSG for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this powerful collection.

Como que la poesía era realmente buena, no me malinterpretes, solo que no resoné con mucha de ella como suelo hacer normalmente. Por alguna razón, tenía las expectativas muy altas, así que no sé, simplemente no me impactó de la manera que esperaba

I really wanted to love this. I went in I think with too high of exceptions, which altered my perception of the poetry. I did like some of the poems, and don't get me wrong, the poems were beautiful I just personally did not resonate with them. Since I did not resonate with them, they fell short for me and I just felt a bit bored. I think realistically I would give it 2.5 stars.

There lives a girl in me who will not die is eye opening, nostalgic enchanting, and harrowing. Tove Ditlevsen does a fantastic job at looking back and looking forward. Reflecting on life as it is and as it was. This collection touches on childhood, falling in and out of love, mental health, motherhood, longing, self, life, death, and marriage in such an elegant manner.
So Stunningly written.

I was so pleased to have the wonderful translator’s note at the beginning of this collection of poetry. Knowing nothing of the author’s work it was a perfect introduction into the world I was about to enter. I particularly enjoyed the curation of the poems and the way in which the different sections were themed.

While no single poem stood out as particularly memorable, the collection as a whole left a lasting impression on me. The author’s despair and struggles became more palpable the longer I spent with her work, and even though I finished the collection days ago, I still feel an uneasiness when I think about it. It's definitely a collection I wouldn’t mind revisiting someday.

P.S. The introduction and the translator’s note added insightful commentary that helped me appreciate the poems even more.

The first time I found out about Ditlevsen’s The Copenhagen Trilogies, I fell in love with her writing. It is vulnerable, sad, and painfully beautiful.
This collection of poetry is just as great. Over the years, we see her style change.
If you’re a fan of Virginia Woolf or Sylvia Plath, check this book out.

I am a huge Ditlevsen fan but have never read her poetry. I was so surprised and yet not, it has her signature worries and charm and I love it.

I really loved this. There were so many ripples of childhood throughout and the writing was beautiful. Motherhood, mental health, childhood, marriage, loneliness, companionship, family - so many things were so well explored and I definitely recommend it.

I'm the first to rate and review this book, and yes, I wish I had nicer things to say, but as I always say, for me, a review is meant to reflect a personal reading experience, not be the end-all judgement of the book itself.
Which is to say that Tove Ditlevsen was an acclaimed, beloved, lauded poet in her native Denmark and perhaps beyond it. She was also a very unhappy woman (as in very unhappy - she killed herself) with one failed romance after another, who lived from 1920s to 1970s. All of her work, presented in this volume in chronological order reflect all those things ... and pretty much exclusively those things. If you're interested in the interiority of a depressed woman from that era, by all means this is the book for you.
Ditlevsen interestingly enough often went for rhyming (as it should be) poetry, and sometimes ultra minimalistic. So the collection, despite its page count, reads very quickly.
And yes, it didn't make much of an impression on this reader, but user milage may vary. Thanks Netgalley.

First, I'd like to extend a thanks to the author of the poems, Tove Ditlevsen, the translators, the publisher of this collection, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, and NetGalley for the privilege of being able to read There Lives a Young Girl in Me Who Will Not Die. I will share my review to Goodreads, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble upon release.

After reading the background on the author, I was extremely interested in the poetry and was surprised by how much imagery and feeeling were conveyed. Many of the poems engage the idea of aging, being a woman, and finding your place in the world with a changing identity. Some of the poems are very sad and difficult, and made me feel for the poet and what she must have been through to feel such sadness and struggle. These are poems that many women can identify with, considering the difficulty of holding so many roles.

The author is able to express so many major themes of adulthood and feminitity, poverty, aging, and the loss of loved ones in a way that both tells stories and builds worlds through lovely images and heartbreaking realizations. I would recommend this for anyone who enjoys poetry in translation, gender studies topics, is discovering their identity, or struggling with some major traumas they may need help working through. There are some poems that just feel deeply sad, without resolution or any cheerfulness, much like some events in life. I felt like the voice of the author was very clear and vulnerable, as pointed out by the translators at the end. This could be really helpful for someone needing real and honest truths about things they may be feeling.

This is a short book of poems. It was nice and maybe some of it was lost in translation because some of them did not make sense to me. It was still written beautifully, and a lot of the poems I could connect to.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this complimentary ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

As a fan of the author, I was curious to explore their poetry, even though it's not my usual genre. While a few of the themes resonated with me, the poems felt simplistic and didn’t leave much of an impact.