"be careful with how you choose to love people
don't destroy them
don't destroy yourself"

this entire collection hit me in the heart in ways i needed, especially now.
this year i want to practice softness more than ever before.
i want to love right, whether it's myself or others, in ways everyone can respect and understand, with no expectations or doubts, without taking away from myself by giving to someone else.
many of these poems made me want to cry, poc are so brave and beautiful.
more praise should be given, i hope people read this book and open their hearts to the realities around us and inside of others

A very interesting collection of poetry. Sometimes it didn’t really feel like I was reading a poem or that she didn’t try that hard to write the poems but at the end of the day good poetry is subjective. What’s okay for me might be amazing for someone else.

This was an interesting collection. I think the themes of love and race were present throughout and Chisala has a really present voice. She could really develop into being a fantastic poet but this debut collection was a bit weaker than what i wanted. A few good pieces but generally a little weak,

This was incredibly relatable to me as a woman, and as someone who struggles with her mental health. I think it'd be even more relatable to women of color. The poems are easy to understand, nice and short, very accessible to someone new to poetry. Highly recommend!

A valid reason to make an uproarious, fat noise. These simple poems were thought-provoking, self-affirming, and revelatory.

What a beautiful book. I am a young, white, American male - in short, something that has hurt the world a great deal. It is good to read and know something from someone who is not me. 5 stars because it is exactly what it purports to be and more. Many quotes have been shared to my IG stories, @lukeskyfoos.

I personally haven't read Salt by Nayyirah Waheed, which a lot of people are comparing this to. In my uneducated, therefore, opinion, this was so well written. Highly relatable and heart-warming, Upile Chisala offers an unapologetic anthology of what it means to be a black woman in 'soft magic.'

The minimalist approach is poetry, while dismissed by some as "Tumblr" or "hit-enter" poetry, is becoming more popular, and I for one am delighted. Personally, I love that every word means more when there are so few of them to start; the precise employment of language to convey a simple but important truth. Chisala's messages about self-love for black women deserve to be heard by a wider audience, and I hope it is someday.

"Love, the only kind that counts, is wholesome."

“I am dripping melanin and honey. I am black without apology.”

soft magic is, as it says on the tin, a poetry collection that explores the self, joy, blackness, gender, matters of the heart, the experience of Diaspora, spirituality, and how we survive. As her debut collection and my own introduction to her work, it's an absolutely wonderful book. The poetry is moving and evokes the feeling of soft magic in your very bones.

I can't wait to get my own physical copy, because not only is it a quality collection, it would look beautiful on my shelves.

This is a short but sweet collection which explores some interesting themes surrounding feminism, gender, self-love, relationships, and more.

A beautiful collection of poems on love, family, new adventures, fears, hopes, dreams-all written in a way that any reader can relate to.
Thanks Netgalley for the eARC.