Tomorrow's Woman

Thanks to the publisher for directly reaching out to read this one. I thought this was much longer than a typical book of poetry, but overall still good. Bellamacina writes in a style I have not come across yet, but I loved it and I really enjoyed the length of her poems (being not too long). One of my favorites was 'Clear Water'.

This is an unusual collection of poetry.
The reader’s sense of embracing it is slightly lost in Robert Montgomery’s impassioned introduction. Someone who struggles to get to grips with understanding poems got some of what he was saying but left me grasping for meaning and a sense of reason. He implies that true poetry written in English should read like a translated piece from a magical language. Shorthand for gobbledygook is to be expected as it is art the mark of genius.
Well poetry often seems like a foreign tongue to me and without clarity there is little comprehension.
The more you read the better it seems and I remove myself from literary criticism and academic views and aim for what sounds good or verses I like.
With you tube I have found that often you can hear poets like Greta Bellamacina reading their work. This helps with rhythm and context and gives a more manageable bite to digest.
For me Stockholm Syndrome was clearer when I learned it was about her pregnancy and The Jungle was about the refugee camp in France but neither still satisfy me fully:
I like Seven Sisters as a whole poem, and Waiting Room Hands appealed to me and showed me that it was worth trying to understand Greta the poet more.

Some of her couplets resonate with me:
“the oceans are filled with reason
they reflect us in their wake.”
ABOVE WATER
‘Faraway I put the memory of you above water.
and send it out as a paper boat.’
“I don’t know how many times we’ve moved house
to find space for dreaming.”

I liked that the poems are grounded in London and that they reflect the person of the poet. I wish I understood all the classical references, the use of bird, flowers and colours - blue coms up a lot. 5 poems mention library or libraries so I wonder what this signifies other than I have fines to pay.

I enjoyed these poems; re-read and they’ll grow on me more but this isn’t my natural comfort zone. We should read more poetry here is another idea to begin that process.

I’d never heard of Bellamacina before and decided to read this after the publisher sent out a promotional email about the collection. I was blown away by how much I enjoyed the poems on offer. Bellamacina’s poems are beautiful and lyrical. The poems are different lengths but never more than a couple of pages so the collection was easy to dip in and out of. I particularly enjoyed Clear Water, Stockholm Syndrome, The Jungle and Above Water. The poems explore the idea of being a woman in modern society through Bellamacina’s own experiences. I thought this was terrific.

Strong poetry forms the basis of the creative freedom in this book. While it may not be for everyone, I deeply appreciate what this author has captured.

This striking cover caught my eye and the thoughtful poems it held did not disappoint. The poems vary in length from a few lines to two pages, giving it a nice rhythm without getting monotonous. A good number of these poems fall into the form of writing that is not necessarily readily understandable, but is truly beautiful and allows for reader interpretation. Those who love to interpret passages on their own will enjoy these poems. Readers who prefer to have things simply stated may be less comfortable.

Tomorrow's Woman by Greta Bellamacina is a collection of intriguing poetry. The poems within this collection was written in a style that I hadn't before encountered. The poems, while hard to decipher the personal meaning and symbolism, were interesting and made me pause to think about.
Of the poems, this section of a poem called The Jungle really spoke to me.

If we were to meet out of this time
seven dozing swans
rushing so quickly that we mistake them for paper.

And we know all the things, we know now
that the sun always pulls the light back

and we are always solared by our dreams,
sabotaging objects
killing quickly, and making us bored

and the gazing electrical shelters
have a home for us.

Despite not understanding a lot of what the poems meant, I enjoyed this collection immensely.

Greta Bellamacina writes with exquisite imagery flowing throughout her poems in "Tomorrow's Woman." She frequently explores light, stars, and earth in this collection. It is beautiful and inspiring, aching and open. Highly recommended for all poetry collections.

Tomorrow’s Woman by Greta Bellamacina

5 stars

Woah. This is the poetry collection I’ve been searching for by modern poets. Modern poetry is steeped in a lot of short and clipped poetry. Some of it can pack a punch, but most of it just leaves me hanging and unsatisfied. Tomorrow’s Woman showcases that long-form poetry is not forgotten and is still effective. It was STUNNING. Greta Bellamacina is a truly captivating poet and one of the best of our age. This collection captivated me and it covers everything from love, grief, and pregnancy. I loved that this collection celebrates pregnancy and what that can mean for a woman. I feel like there aren’t many poems written about the topic and it was beautiful to read in this medium. I was also a huge fan of her conservation poetry “Whale Nation in a Plastic Bag” was one of the best poems in this collection.


“Tomorrow’s woman has seen war in heaven
she is the blue of light before time draws”

Whimsical Writing Scale: 5

Favorite Poems:
*Tomorrow’s Woman
*Church
*Living Room Mirror
*Whole World On Your Hips
*Clear Water
*Revolution
*In the Morning, Penelope
*Life
*Pale Gold
*Stockholm Syndrome
*New Glass
*When You Wake
*Collapse of the World
*Dartmoor Wedding Song
*Death
*The Dreamers
*Silent Languages
*Phosphorescent
*Above Water
*The Perseid Meteor Shower
*Afterlight
*Missing Europe
*Unoccupied
*The Jungle
*May Trees
*Whale Nation in a Plastic Bag
*East Window
*Dawn Breaking

I would recommend this poetry collection 100%. Out of all of the poetry collections I’ve read this is the only one that I have enjoyed all of it and had no issues. I loved it. If you only read one poem in 2020, pick up Tomorrow’s Woman.


Plotastic Scale: 5
Cover Thoughts: I love the cover and the blurred image. I saw it and was immediately drawn in.

Thank you, Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing, for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

A gorgeous book of poetry.Real open magical.A book of poems by this wonderful poet will draw you in to this lyrical beautiful writing,#netgalley #Andrew McNeil .