Dawn Lanuza

Growth and change--two powerful anthems resonate throughout this collection of poetry and prose that will leave you feeling emboldened and empowered. You Are Here is Dawn Lanuza's newest collection of contemporary poetry that lends itself to the idea of giving ourselves second chances. These self-healing poems and words draw on central themes of self-love, self-discovery, and empowerment. In order to survive the vicissitudes of life, You Are Here boldly reminds readers to always choose themselves, and in times where it seems impossible, to find the courage and strength to start anew.

Ingrid 

** An ARC is generously provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review **

1.5 Stars

Disclaimer: The biggest reason for me not liking this book, was personal preference. This is the second book I've read from this author and I unfortunately haven't liked either of them.

The book is advertised as a book that will leave you feeling empowered, something it did not deliver on for me. In the back of the book, the author says it's about giving oneself a second chance for a second love. I definitely feel like this book focuses on relationships. If the book had been marketed as a relationship type book, which I feel is more appropriate, I would not have picked it up.

The first issue I had was that it felt very unorganised. There would be a poem that made me sad, then one that made me happy, then another sad one. It felt very "all over the place", and it made it hard to get that emotional immersion into the book. I think it would have been better to have it separated by parts. 

The poems in general felt like something I had read before. It didn't bring anything new to the table. 

I didn't care for the writing. It felt like the focus was on how everyone else is thinking and changing them, not so much about changing your own ways. I got the impression that some of the poems had the "love fixes everything" view. In one of the poems, the author writes: "Oh, how my life lacked color until you came with cans of paint and splashed it all over". I don't have anything against that sentence itself, but when the book is supposed to make you feel empowered, this just doesn't do that. She also writes in another poem "I require able hands". I might be misinterpreting, but I feel like it indicates needing other people, which again, doesn't have that empowerment feel to it. 

I will end my review on a happy note and mentioned the things I did like about this book. I really enjoyed the poems Stop Over and The Art of Eating Alone. I interpreted Stop Over as if it was about depression and that was something I could relate to. The Art of Eating Alone focused on learning to enjoy your own company by starting with little things. 

I do think that if you have liked this authors other work, you might enjoy this as well. If you have been through a break up and is starting to allow yourself to fall in love again, you might enjoy this book.

You Are Here

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