I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

This is a beautiful and touching book of poems that are truly heartfelt. I could feel the authors pain in afew of these poems and so many in the first 1/3 of this book were so relateable to me they could have been my experiences.
This book is deep and meaningful and many of the poems are only very short but very well done.

It’s National Poetry Month so I’m trying to read as much poetry as I can and I enjoyed this collection! I can totally relate to the poems about love, breakups, acceptance, and hope. I couldn’t relate as closely to the poems about depression, therapy, and race but they were honest and I appreciate the author sharing them with the world so others don’t feel so alone.
I think fans of poets like Lang Leav, Jennae Cecelia, Amanda Lovelace, and Rupi Kaur will enjoy “Becoming.”

Thank you Netgally and the publisher for the chance to read this ebook for free.

This review also appears here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3295501991

Every book published by Andrews McMeel is an automatic buy for me at this point, and the wonderful thing is that they never disappoint! becoming. is such a lovely, powerful modern collection of poems that I will definitely return to again and again!

Love can be really painful. Specially when someone is capable of being in love deeply and perceiving the depth even when the other person is not. The poetry in this book is a world of pain. The author takes you on a journey inside her mind which is troubled by the people in her life and the way they affect her life. How do people embrace darkness and love being broken and still want others to accept and love them in a manner which satisfies their core? How do people become everything for someone in one moment and then no-one the other moment?

These are stories about moving on and stories about not able to let go. These are stories about both forgetting and remembering simultaneously. They show various aspects to love, pain, darkness and judgements,

This collection of poems is truly beautiful, powerful and inspired. I feel like this book is a journey that everyone at one point or another must take, Renaada is an author follow. To read her words is to become something bigger, something better. I truly can’t wait to share this with my loved ones. Unlike a lot of books of poetry, she doesn’t get repetitive or tired. I honestly couldn’t get enough, and I can’t wait for more

This book is amazing. Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this. I love reading all sorts of poetry and this is one of those books where I will go back to and read again. This book goes over the subjects of relationships, depression, self-esteem and self-empowerment. I would recommend this book for all sorts of readers.

The premise of the book was "Everyone understands life us hard, but self-love and dedication will always be key. Becoming is a beautiful debut collection of poetry centering around themes of feminism, sexuality, race and mental health."
It's full of over 100 poems, some longer, some shorter.
While I liked the premise and also most of the poems, I think there was more potential there. At some points the author was hinting at something but wasn't putting it into words. And don't get me wrong, normally that is what makes poetry good, a layer underneath all the words that you have to discover on your own. But in this case I saw the potential for the author to give that layer but there wasn't enough "hidden" meaning in it.
I still really liked a lot of stuff because it resonated with me (for example: "i am waiting at the end of the promise you forgot you made."), but unfortunately I missed that layer underneath a couple of times.
So in the end I think I'm giving it 3.5/5 stars

🌞🌞🌞 Actually 4.5/5⭐
I related so mutch wit this poetry collection.

First, I liked how it was written in a way you see a jurney. Not even a growth, but how the author went down in the first place.

I loved the way that she talked to me through her poems, like we were the same person.

I loved the way every poem was written, not like a simple poem, but like she was talking to me. It was amazing.

This is one of my favourite poetry collections I've evere read.

Firstly, I would like to thank NetGalley and Andrews McMeel for giving me the opportunity to read this book for an honest review.

The fact that this book had been self published a few years ago by Renaada is very inspiring and to then get a publishing deal with a publishing company that has published women like Amanda Lovelace and Rupi Kaur is such a great achievement. Having rebranded the book with a fabulous new cover and a beautiful layout inside with brand new poetry as well I really hope that this book does well. I really enjoyed reading it. The amount of topics covered in this poetry anthology is mind blowing. Heartbreak, loss, grief, self worth, depression, suicide and so much more. I knew that I would love this book from the very being just from reading the dedication. It is dedicated to Renaada's Granddad and the poem that she wrote was so beautiful. Having recently lost my Grandma I could really relate to each word.

There were a few things that I didn't like. The fact that this book has no capital letters hurt my head. The most hurtful one was lowercase 'i'. It is supposed to be capitalised. Also none of the poems had titles which makes it harder to refer back to favourite pieces and I've always be taught to title my work. Another thing was that every single poem was centralised on the page. This was only done for aesthetic purposes which I do on Instagram but I would never do it in actual published work. My tutor on my creative writing course just told me off for centre aligning a poem. Only ever do it for a reason! Don't over use it. Also there was overuse of one word lines in a lot of the poems which should only be done for impact. But I was able to overlook all of this because I loved the content so much. If I could release a book any where near this standard I would be so happy.

I like this poetry a lot. It shared stories about women and lots of things related to it. Therefore, I feel like this book is my voice.

Great book! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
Thanks to the Publisher for giving me the opportunity to read it in advance

Thanks for Netgalley & respective publishers ! !
I think it's not my type of poetry for something like that

Becoming is a collection of short poems by Renaada Williams. The poetry she's written has themes of heartbreak, mental health issues, being a person of color in America, feminism, and self-love. I can resonate with some of the poems, and I had a few favorites as well. I liked how she broke up the poems into different sections. I'm a huge fan of these types of poems. When I worked in a bookstore they used to shelve them into 'internet poetry'. It was a fast read so you can definitely finish it in half an hour or less. I felt and understood every poem. Below are 4 of my faves from the different sections in the book.

<u>Heartbreak</u>:
It's funny
how easily the monster in my head
can cuddle me
so softly
while laying in bed

<u>Mental Illness</u>:
I know what hands clenched to the chest
from crying all night feels like
and I think you do too
-normal

<u>Being Colored in America</u>:
I just want to live in a world
that I'm not afraid
to be alive in

<u>Self-love</u>:
You
have to stop customizing yourself
to fit someone who doesn't even deserve
you

Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This collection of poetry was inspirational. Each poem involves heartbreak, self-esteem, and self-care. Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for my ARC.

'Becoming.' is an incredible poetry book. Renaada Williams writes about black lives, heartbreaks and how to overcome them, and it just felt as if she was talking directly to me. It's such a wonderful poetry collection and I just wish it was longer. This book really spoke to me. Rating 5/5 stars.

I received an ARC of becoming. By Renaada Williams from NetGalley. This is a simple and beautiful poetry collection.

“We are created in the darkness and forced into the light,” (Williams 116). The main themes dealt with are love, depression, suicide, race, and self-love. The poems are short and to the point which I appreciate. The style is what I refer to as “Instagram poetry”. It is very modern and broken up, sometimes roughly.

Some lines and words are repetitive throughout the book which is the main reason this collection received 4/5 stars. Overall, I enjoyed the poems and felt the Authors emotion behind each one.

This collection of poetry was beautiful, simple and impactful. Every poem seemed to pull on my thoughts and emotions. This collection is a gem that I will be sure to revisit.
A huge thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for my ARC.

The poems about self-esteem, unhealthy relationships, depression and race, and the end of the collection some powerful and inspiring thoughts. I think these poems is very simple: some statements edit to poem form. If you like Rupi Kaur or Amanda Lovelace, you should read this book too.

Becoming is a collection of poetry covering serious topics such relationships, depression, race, self-worth, self-esteem and self-empowerment. I definitely connected more with some poems than others but find that is always the way with poetry collections. As with all good poetry several pieces left me in awe of a poet’s ability to say so much so succinctly. Possibly because succinctness doesn’t come naturally to me! Such regular, almost mundane words can carry so much power when combined in just the right way. Best savoured slowly. Definitely recommended.

Wow. I'm not normally a poetry person, but I decided to read this ARC on a whim. I will admit that this book as a whole didn't speak to me in ways that it would have in the past, but it gave me insight into how far I've come in my mental health journey. This book was full of irony (the best kind) and insightful thoughts that will make you revisit old wounds and past trauma. This book will convince you that you are enough and that who you are is a work in progress. I thoroughly enjoyed this book in one sitting and will be checking out this author's other work! I am definitely more open to the idea of poetry now and the waves that it can create.