Instructions for Traveling West were great poems. Sullivan's writing is approachable but still insightful.

Some of these poems hit deeply and will resonate for a long time and others were lovely to experience in the moment but may not stick long-term. Overall a lovely collection mediating on existence, wants, and one's relationship to the world.

Instructions for Traveling West by Joy Sullivan is a poetry collection about what happens when we start over and figure out our desires. Here's one of my favorite sections: "Luck, like any little deity, is deeply mysterious and rather unknowable. Best to treat her with only reverence and gratitude. We don't earn luck and she certainly doesn't owe us anything. Manifestation talk stresses me out because it usually means someone is trying to sell you something. Or they want to make you feel bad for being uncertain, where, in reality, uncertainty is actually a beautiful posture of humility, in my opinion... I don't know if karma is real or if we attract, magnetize, manifest or whatnot, but here's some unconfirmed science I live by: love is a really wild energy and like any force field, the more you send out, the bigger the boomerang." I really enjoyed this collection of poetry. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

The first thing I noticed about this collection is the musicality in every line, which is only further propelled by the sweeping cadence of natural beauty within. I really think this easy accessibility will help so many readers find themselves within these pages.

A solid mix of abstraction and detail allows these poems to be both grounded and in the clouds. And even better yet, her humor spreads unapologetically throughout to temper what might otherwise read as overly sentimental and bring it back to a place of real human connection.

So many of these poems work in the realms of homesickness, memory, ripe nostalgic longing for the fredom of youth, the lack of fear, being of two worlds and feeling entitled to neither, and gentleness in a world populated by those who would laugh at the ruins.

Sullivan is a master of the final line, really delivering that last lingering image or phrase that is bound to stick in your brain long after you've finished reading the next poem and the next and the next.

I really enjoyed this collection! It was nostalgic and I liked the themes that it explored! There were a few poems that mentioned animal death/violence that I had a hard time with, so I tried to skip them when I could. My favorite poems were: Howl, The Cashier at the Gas Station Asks Where I’m From, Eve’s Apology, Red, My Mother Says Kissing a Man Without a Mustache is Like Eating Eggs Without Salt, After Covid and Comment Section. I also loved this quote from the poem In This New Life - “I’ve finally found a way to live on the inside of my life. This time, I’m the painter. This time, I’m the muse.”

A thought-provoking, accessible collection of growth and transformation. I found myself connecting to several poems from my past life experiences when I had to start fresh. I appreciate the ability to be immersed in a collection like that.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House, and author Joy Sullivan for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was stunned by this book. Really reminiscent of Mary Oliver. Immensely readable, meditative and compelling. I savoured these poems. Love, grief, climate change and tenderness. One of the best poetry collections I've read in a long time, can't believe it's a debut.

Brb, buying a copy of this for everyone in my life.

I first read Sullivan's poem "my mother says kissing a man without a mustache is like eating an egg without salt" as an jnstagram post which captured my attention and made me smile, but didnt encourage me to get more into her work...the totality of this collection of poems, at this time in my life and probably on this earth is so damn perfect and vital. Sullivan writes her indecision and her loneliness and her joy so perfectly, and i definitely cried more than once reading it. I loved it, i love it, i want to tuck it in all my bags and on evry table of my house.

Thanks netgalley and randomhouse for letting me review this book.

My first book of poems! I loved this. The author was raw & relatable. I will be purchasing for my own bookshelf to share with friends.

A beautiful and thought provoking poetry collection. So much wisdom to be found with themes of reconnection, starting over and finding your true self.

A few really lovely poems in here, but overall this collection wasn't for me. 3.5 stars, rounded up.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

Instructions for Traveling West is a debut poetry collection.

I can't remember the last time (before picking up this book) that I picked up a new collection of poetry and was online, preordering a hard copy, and ravenous for more, before I'd even finished the first poem. Joy Sullivan's poetry really is just that captivating, I think. Each piece was uplifting, or heartbreaking, or breathtaking; some felt like looking in a mirror for the first time, others felt like coming home. It's a joyful experience, to pick up a poem and feel like you know it, and it knows you, and a rare experience to find a book full of them. I don't know when Joy Sullivan will be publishing more, but I'll be waiting anxiously for when she does.

I don't usually have good luck with contemporary poetry. Not that I'm an expert or anything, it's just that the last collections I've read have been lacking and superficial, and failed at making me feel something, anything. Even so, I keep trying whenever I find one, and this one caught my eye on NetGalley. I'm so glad I requested and got it!

Joy Sullivan has a voice and it was a delight to read her poems. I highlighted so many lines that stood out to me and I know I'll revisit many of the poems, so I'll be adding this book to my library as soon as I can.

This poetry collection is tender and sweet, sad and hopeful. I found myself relating to a lot of the things Joy communicated through her poems, and that's what I look for in poetry. That even if we live such different lives, something about our humanity still allows us to connect because you were brave enough to share yourself. That's the depth and authenticity that other poetry collections have lacked for me, and I'm glad this has it.

I'm even left feeling like I know a few things about this author as a person because I feel like she truly shared not only her perspective and her words but also her experiences and the core of who she is. I just loved this!

I loooooovvvved this book. The poems were very easy to get into, very digestible, and still very filling. I loved the themes in this collection of poems which chronicles the author's journey away from a man, moving out west, and finding herself along the way. There were a couple of poems in this collection that I felt spoke directly to ME, which was a cool experience. There's an interlude in the middle of the poetry with several poems on the theme of Eve in the garden, which I really enjoyed. I will read more of her poetry any day, and recommend to anyone who thinks they might like poetry but aren't sure.

Thanks to netgalley for the free copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

#netgalley #instructionsfortravelingwest

Just lovely. I have followed Joy online for a while now, and was thrilled to get an e-arc of this book! Poetry is so necessary, so vital to the daily work of living. Joy writes in a clear, evocative, passionate, and thoughtful way. I am constantly amazed by her command of language and imagery, and particularly resonate with the way she processes transition, change, and grief. Truly a necessary read for all - poetry lovers or not!
Favorite excerpt: “no matter which road you take, it will be both glorious and unbearable. Every road is lonely. Every road, holy. The only error is not walking forth.”

I started following Joy on social media because someone shared the title poem, "Instructions for Traveling West." I think that poem will resonate with many people without the context--people that have wanderlust, want new beginnings, etc. So I do worry that some will pick up this book and find that many of the other poems are not what they were expecting But they do all fit together in the context of the poet's life--her missionary parents took her to Africa as a child, then had to flee because of political unrest. She grapples with finding her identity outside of the Evangelical Christian world, then outside corporate America, and outside of a relationship she leaves to travel West. I'm of a similar age and grappling with my own evolution away from my upbringing, as well as the economic ups and downs of being born in the 1980s (I won't say the M-word), so some of these poems were almost too close to home for me. But that is the work of poetry, isn't it? To make you feel and think and want to write your own. So thank you, Joy Sullivan, Penguin Random House, and Netgalley for the opportunity to travel west, at least in spirit.

Thank you to Joy Sullivan, Random House Publishing Group, and Netgalley for providing me with this ARC. Publish Date: April 9th, 2024

Please do yourself a favor and put this on your TBR list! It has been awhile since I read a collection of poetry, and I forgot how powerful they can be. This collection was incredibly beautiful and full of raw honesty. I cannot wait until this is released so I can purchase a physical copy and read it all over again.

This book made me want to wash my hair in the rain like I did when I was a kid, travel the world, and live for yourself.

A lovely collection of poetry that's also clearly a memoir about moving on. Sullivan has invested her heart in these poems. Thanks to Netgalley for the ArC. One to savor.

It is rare when I read a book of poems and love every single one. "Instructions for Traveling West" by Joy Sullivan is that diamond in the rough. This poetry collection joins "Above Ground" by Clint Smith as one of the best poetry books I’ve ever read. I devoured the whole thing in a day!

Sullivan has that rare and unmistakable gift to transform the most ordinary of experiences into an extraordinary gift of magic through her words and verse. Her poetry is raw, unapologetic, dazzling, and full of emotion and recognition. Sullivan is a master wordsmith who knows exactly how to write a line in just the right way that the stanza would lose meaning and be incomplete without it.

There is something in this collection for everyone, so please do yourself a favor and add this to your TBR pile.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing an ARC of this book for me to read early, love wholeheartedly, and encourage everyone to read.

really enjoyed this book. The author wrote about a lot from love, to covid, to travel, to religion, to etc.

There were so many poems that I’ve already reread from this book. I will definitely be passing it on to others.

I loved the honest take on her religious upbringing and where that’s left her in her life now.

I loved the female empowerment and girls girl energy.

This book made me want to roll in the rain, scream at the sky, hold my loved ones closer, say the nice thing, dust off my suitcase, and do what’s best for me.