Violet

By: Sabrina Simon
Publisher: Gatekeeper Press
Publication Date: July 9, 2022
ISBN: 978-1662928123
Reviewed by: Lily Andrews
Review Date: November 8, 2022

"You always gain by giving love"- Reese Witherspoon. Violet is a strikingly real collection of love and romance poetry penned by the resilient author Sabrina Simon. She opens her world to readers with a compelling insight into what love is, the feelings and emotions that surround this four-letter word including how to come to terms with the state of being in love.

Simon is unflinchingly honest in showcasing personal reflections and thoughts that surround this topic spanning the years 2015 to 2022. Whilst poems about heartbreak might not be as uplifting as those about the joys of love, they can be equally as beautiful and meaningful. Simon aims to blur the lines between dreams and reality in art, explaining the rather whimsical nature of love. It is this candor that makes the anthology so beautiful.

With poems that are both imaginative and highbrow, this book encapsulates the role of love and how it changes our general outlook on life. Some poems employ foreseeable rhyme patterns, but most are written in melodic free verse form, making use of internal rhymes, slant rhymes, and alliteration in lines that beg to be read aloud. Words are an incredible outlet for thoughts, dreams, feelings, and even aspirations. The author's thoughts ebb, flow, blast, and rage, with overwhelming precision.

Elsewhere, hope, joy, and desire dominate, culminating in captivating catharsis. Some of the entries feel like poetic memoirs while others reflect on the poet's view about love and romance. Simon's treatise floats rapidly from free to lyrical and back again, awakening an exciting world that's by turns bleak and starkly beautiful. The entries' etched detail is lyrical and innate and its beguiling preface serves as a canapé of what readers should expect along the chapters.

Readers are invited to pore over this gem through its estimable word choice, alliteration, and imagery that captures the magic of falling in love, infatuation, and heartache. Lines such as "I can feel the harmony in which we inhale and exhale. I don't have to worry because I know in your dreams my mere essence is keeping you at peace, and I smile in knowing because I know I am still embedded in the fibers with which your mind speaks because there is nothing sinful about never leaving you thoughtless, and seducing you from the neck up..." display how human emotions are chaotic and fragile like glass as they transition from smooth to inevitability.

The language is evocative, yet simple, elegant yet unembellished, putting a strong trope in the reader's mind thus facilitating a deeper understanding of Simon's feelings. Some entries are long such as "Are You in Love" and others are short such as "My First Love." Altogether, they bring out an authentic tone and a nostalgic vibe allowing one to experience the happiness and pain of love and loss.

Quill says: A fresh and original piece of work, Violet by Sabrina Simon gives a fascinating glimpse into the life of love and love in life, leaving nothing out by baring the poet's soul, to craft some mesmerizing verses that stay in a reader's mind long after the reading is done.

Author Interview