Pillow Thoughts III

I actually really enjoyed this! I’m not saying this in a surprised way I’m just saying it was not what I was expecting. It’s broken up into 5 different sections and what I really enjoyed was that it wasn’t all about heart break. I find that majority of poetry can take that turn and use that as a sole focus of their books but this one also talked about life in general. I had more than a few poems resonate with me and that I quite liked.

I do recommend this book and I think because of the content it will connect with a vast population. Well done! I will be checking out other books by this author.

Pillow Thoughts III: Mending the Mind is Courtney Peppernell's third installment to the Pillow Thoughts series of poetry collections. I've read volumes one and two previously. Volume one was amazing, but volume two was a bit of a letdown. So I was worried going into book three. However I am happy to report that this collection was just as great as the first one if not better!
Beautifully written as always,it explored themes such as love and heartbreak, fear and courage, depression and hope. The poems about depression resonated with me the most as it is something I struggle with for over a decade now.
It was especially perfect that I read this book during Pride Month as Courtney Peppernell is of the LGBTQIAP+ community and the poems about love and heartbreak reflect that.
One of my favorite poems:
I’ve never wanted perfect. I love messy handwriting, days that feel like they are blurred into one. I love notes left on windowsills and lipstick stains on coffee mugs. I love piling into bed late at night with socks on. I love passion. Show me your love, talk about your dreams. There is beauty in the chaos of living.

Courtney Peppernell, through three volumes in Pillow Thoughts, has shown herself to be an artistic and reflective poetic talent. I have been impressed with the wide appeal of these books. Peppernell writes with emotion and creativity, with thoughtfulness and candor, and uses metaphor and dialogue to construct her work. I appreciate her willingness to go to personal places in these words.

Courtney Peppernell has become one of my favorite modern poets. Her first two volumes of this collection are a heartbreaking real telling of relationships and what feeling occur before, during, and after. Pillow Thoughts III is just as beautiful. I love how deep and passionate her poems are. Everyone has been at these points in there lives. I found myself relating to this entire collection.

Peppernell has created a third installment of her Pillow Thoughts series and it was very enjoyable! While some poems were a bit repetitive the overall lyricism and flow was bright and empowering. This poetry collection is great for all ages but I think a lot of teens and young adults will really benefit from the messages.

”That’s all we are, aren’t we, just souls who are sometimes kind and sometimes cruel and almost always complicated.”

FORMAT READ: eBook (Adobe Digital Editions)
SIMILAR VIBES: The Mermaid’s Voice Returns In This One
READ FOR: easy to get through but uplifting poems
*All my reviews are spoiler-free unless stated otherwise*
*Thank you to Andrews McMeel Publishing for sending me an ARC to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

OVERALL: 4.5/5

The Pillow Thoughts installment will always have a special place in my heart. It always seems to speak to me personally. I needed this and it reached me at the perfect time.

It always gives me that perfect whimsical, hopeful vibe that is perfect to sleep to. Which is perfect considering the title. The poems are like my literal thoughts when I’m lying down on my bed and nearly about to sleep. Courtney Peppernell is a poet that I adore because of how well she can translate thoughts to something that everyone can read and relate to, no matter what it is really about. I found myself just smiling in certain parts <3

This particular collection speaks about when you’re translating from a place of hurt to a place of healing and love. I love the way this ‘series’ progressed in terms of themes. It’s nothing too heavy but is enough to uplift you.

”I don’t think about you when I’m lonely; I think about you when I’m doing the things I love.”


ugh, here I am having feelings again <3

The illustrations in between sections in this book are also my favorite out of the three books!! They’re wonderfully designed and matches the particular section’s theme.

”Who you are is louder than you think."


WRITING STYLE: ★★★★☆
THEMES: ★★★★★ (the musical related ones were my favorite)
ILLUSTRATIONS: ★★★★★

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
***
Courtney Peppernell’s third installment in her Pillow Thoughts series is beautiful, sweet and lyrical. This collection focuses more on self and healing rather than just love, although love still comes up. The collection is split into 5 sections but I was particularly touched by the second section “If your mind needs repairing.”
Peppernell is one of my favorite current modern poets and I’m so excited and can’t wait to add this to my collection.

I read and enjoyed Pillow Thoughts I but missed out on Pillow Thoughts II. I’m glad I got a chance to read the third book. It still bothers me that poems and prose pieces don’t have a title but that’s a personal choice and doesn’t detract from the strength of the work. Peppernell tackles a broad range of themes from love and mental illness to self-belief and hope. At times this became an issue because the poems seems quite disconnected from each other. Maybe this was because of the way the collection was put together because it happened a few times. These themes are easy to connect with and relate to. At times I felt like Peppernell could see deep into me and had translated by innermost thoughts and feelings. Pillow Thoughts III is lovely.

Unfortunately I could not open the file for this book. However I have read other titles by the author and so only expect good things.

"Maybe after all this time you were looking to the wrong person to save you. The right person have been there in front of you. You have just forgotten to look in the mirror."

Another book to add to my favorite poem book collection! It was so good and I loved almost all of the poems. The first part was mostly about love and the rest is mostly focused on mental health and encouragement to be better and get through tough times and depression and that its okay to be sad and in pain but not let them control our thoughts and lives.

A few of my favorites:

"There were all these pieces split and broken on the floor, and she spent days on end trying to put the pieces back together again. But if only she realized that life is meant not to restore what was but rather to create something new and move forward."

"They say if you practice something again and again you will become good at it. So why, if you tell yourself everyday that you are capable, do you not believe it?"

"Mental illness is not a weakness. It doesn't define you. It will try to dictate your days and make you feel cursed. But just like anyone else, you are equally a child of the universe."

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with the digital copy for an honest review.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.

Courtney Peppernell is one of my absolutely favorite poets. I love ALL of her books.. and this is no exception.
Her work is raw and beautiful.

You won't be disappointed in this book.

The third installment in the wonderful Pillow Thoughts series by Courtney Peppernell has the subtitle "mending the mind" and is full of positive and inspirational words to heal all kinds of emotional pain, from that of loss, to self doubt or anxiety. I can easily see how many people will find something that resonates with them, something that they connect to, as the themes of the book are universal. As always the language and imagery is often beautiful, though I did feel like the first chapter did not gel completely with the rest of the book. I liked the movement towards hope, acceptance and empowerment towards the end of the book, it felt like I was going on a journey as I read, and I am sure many other readers will feel the same.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

This poetry collection is centred around being hurt and needing to heal, the process of healing.

I have no experience to speak of with modern poetry but always meant to try it, sensing it might be something I could spend many hours with. As a newbie to this kind of reading material, I found Pillow Thoughts III easily accessible and was able to just go with the flow.
The poems are sorted in groups I'd call chapters, but maybe there is a fancy term I don't know, but those are introduced by illustrations of a jellyfish and an owl, a combination I would never have thought of but that works quite well. Also, I like owls a lot, which is a plus.

It felt as if the author was talking directly to me, as if she was sharing her thoughts with me in a very private manner, which of course every author does, but you don't get an intimate feeling every time you read a book.
I felt understood in things that happened, in the regard that things are not going as well as they could be, and encouraged to rest and simply be in order to be able to tackle new stuff in the future. I bookmarked quite a few pages for re-visiting later and now I want to read Pillow Thoughts and Pillow Thoughts II, which is the biggest compliment I can make to something I never tried before. I came, I saw, and I got hooked and want to read more modern poetry.

A fun thing is that you can either read through this volume in one go or dip in and out of to fill your head with beautiful images and I can see myself doing both in the future.

I recieved this book in exchange for an honest review.

This poetry collection is quite uplifting and lovely. The poems are quick to read, mostly written in free verse, but don’t seem unnecessarily dramatic like many free verse poems do. They’re simple and to the point but with some nice images. Some of the poems have subtle rhymes in them and I really enjoyed that effect.

It’s divided into five parts. The first is my favorite, and it’s poems about heartbreak. What I really liked was the honesty and the fact that the poet is a woman writing about another woman. That’s refreshing to see and it was wonderfully written. Made me feel all sorts of emotions.

The second is about mental illness, which was quite a jump from the first topic, and I wasn’t sure what to think at first. But I liked these poems quite a lot. The third section is about self-doubt and I thought this was the weaker one of the collection. It could have been combined with mental illness, I think.

The fourth section is poems to give you inspiration, and these are the really uplifting ones. Basically they’re about having the courage to keep going because life gets better. The last section is called “These are for your mind” and is basically a combination of the rest of the sections. Again, the ones about healing from heartbreak were my favorite because the emotions shone through so clearly.

I’ll be checking out the other books in this series.

NetGalley provided me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was quite different to what I usually read. I did like it though. Because it was different I think this added to why I liked it.
I recommend this book to everyone that wants a nice book to read.

As always, Courtney Peppernell evokes so much emotion in her poems. Pillow Thoughts III: Mending the Mind is the third installment to the Pillow Thoughts series and it doesn't fail to satisfy my heart's craving for thoughtful and heartfelt courage. She writes expertly on subjects such as grief, mental illness, inspiration, love, mind over matter, and so much more. The raw emotion that she writes continues on and so does my love for her prose.

Thank you Netgalley for a chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Poetry is my go to genre. And for a person like me Poetry is a solace. I recall the thoughts correctly which crossed my mind while reading Pillow thoughts 1. However, I have not read the Pillow thoughts 2, I knew I want to read Pillow thoughts 3. Thank you for the arc. I loved how the blend of words can be done in most beautiful way which can yet touch the heart and bring aliveliness to ones life. The book is such a beautiful read about self love and beyond.

This book was beautifully written. I have read Pillowthoughts 1 and Pillowthoughts 2 and wasn’t disappointed in either. I love how she makes her writing very relatable and makes it for everyone. It doesn’t matter if you’re heartbroken or if you’re in love. All of her poems applies to someone. Such a great read and I HIGHLY recommend it!

I am a lover of modern poetry and this collection is definitely all that I wanted. Every poem was significant and made me think. The authors style was engaging and I wanted to savour this read but I gobbled it up in one afternoon.

"It took me such a long time to be myself
So now the only person I want to be with
is someone who wouldn't ever want me to be
anybody else"

Once again, Courtney did an amazing job with her 3rd book of the Pillow Thoughts series. This poem and other poems have struck a chord with me and can apply to anyone.

This is such a great third collection of poetry from one of my favorite poets! I absolutely adored Courtney's first collection, and though the second fell a little flat with me, this was a really grand third installment and I loved the poems and the love and emotion contained within them.

I can't recommend Courtney's collections quite enough because they are all just wonderful. and I just always love the jellyfish illustrations <3

I really enjoyed Pillow Thoughts II and I enjoyed this one just as much. This is a beautiful poetry collection that I just really connected with. Many poems touched me in a certain way and while I know this is a deeply personal opinion, I still think there could be something for everyone in here. So I highly recommend checking this one and all the Pillow Thoughts before it out: I didn't feel connected to poetry in a long time, so reading this and feeling all these feelings made me really happy

I really liked Pillow Thoughts series. This one was no expection. I liked how Courtney Peppernell described love, heartbreak and being strong. It was a really good poetry collection.

It is difficult to find the words to describe how much I loved this poetry collection. I discovered Courtney Peppernell’s work a couple of years ago when I reviewed the first book in the Pillow Thoughts series and she quickly became one of my favorite authors. Her writing is absolutely beautiful and speaks to me on so many levels, and this collection was no different. Her poetry addresses topics that are highly relatable and always timely, which makes them very easy to connect with.

You can feel all the raw emotion in every word Peppernell writes and the pure passion she puts into creating her poems. This collection is split into five parts, each one dealing with a particular theme. And as a whole, each section ties seamlessly into the next, coming together in a perfect blend that warms the heart and soul. Her poems are a series of meticulously crafted vignettes that comfort, heal, and encourage readers. With vivid imagery, Peppernell takes us on a journey that allows us to better understand, accept, and care for ourselves.

One of the best parts of this collection—as well as Peppernell’s other works—is that it is written in a truly unique voice. It stands out among a sea of modern poetry dealing with similar topics and makes for a very captivating and refreshing read. The heartfelt and genuine nature of these poems is easily recognizable. They are seemingly simple but truthfully so profound and intricate. Peppernell’s words consistently empower the reader and contain a level of sincerity that turns this work into a brilliant gem of a book.

On a more personal note, this collection is something that entered my life at a particularly fitting time. I have experienced a great deal of loss over the past year that has left me feeling very emotionally drained. My mind desperately needed the mending that these words do. I was touched very deeply while reading this book—it helped me to confront many thoughts I was struggling to face. This was a very cathartic and uplifting journey that filled me with the positivity that I have been lacking for a while.

These poems are moving, expressive, inspiring, and utterly beautiful. I know that Peppernell’s words will stick with me for the rest of my life and I will regularly return to her collections. Works like this one are what greatly motivate me in my own writing and remind me why I am so passionate about the written word. I would love to touch one person’s life through my writing in the way she has touched mine with hers—provide someone with that bit of comfort and encouragement at a time where it is so vital. I cannot recommend this collection highly enough.

Pillow Thoughts III: Mending the Mind by Courtney Peppernell, 206 pages.
Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2019. $17.
Language: G (0 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Peppernell has a beautiful way with words and a style that feels poetic, even if what she offers is not always set up in a structure that looks like a typical poem. She shares thoughts about heartbreak, encouragement, fear, and our impact on others throughout the five sections the thoughts are separated into. Readers are never told the full story, though a narrative is strung through the background of Peppernell’s poetry -- we understand and feel with Peppernell, even without all the details.
While I love poetry, I often have a hard time staying engaged through an entire book of poems, so I was surprised to find that I wanted to keep turning the pages until I had finished all of Peppernell’s words. I enjoyed the pensive and positive state her words helped me find within myself. Each of her poems are easy to read and relate to -- the kind of honest and sincere thoughts you want to read more of because they feel like truth.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

I was so excited to get this book! I loved the first book so much and the second one didn’t disappoint. I love the covers and the drawings inside that brought the whole book together. There were many poems I thought were amazingly wise and thought provoking.

I love the whole Pillow Thoughts collection, I really enjoy how a lot of these poems were short and easy to read, but many felt very similar and this made it hard to feel connected to each individual poem. Still a great collection that I’d read again.

Pillow Thoughts III: Minding the Mind by Courtney Peppernell is a collection of powerful, insightful and heartfelt poems that covers various topics such as heartbreak, depression and healing. There were dozens of poems that I really connected to, and some that I didn't.
The formatting of the poems did bother me, but I kept my mind open despite it and I felt highly rewarded by giving this collection a chance.

Maybe after all this time you were looking to the wrong
person to save you. The right person had been there in front
of you. You had just forgotten to look in the mirror.

I am so thankful I was able to get an ARC for this wonderful collection! It inspired me to move on and keep my head up even when I’m feeling down. I love how they sectioned off the inspiration. The author’s writing is so beautiful and I read it in one sitting! I definitely will continue to read their writing.

I enjoy poetry collections. I devoured this is one sitting. There’s inspirational poems and thought provoking poems. I connected with some more than others. I believe there’s a poem in this collection for everyone. I thoroughly enjoyed this collection.

There are many things you should worry about
Like sick animals,dying trees, and saving the bees
What others think of you
Is not one of these things.

Great book, very meaningful.