3/5 Not really my kind of poetry

This isn't really my kind of poetry, I prefer just poetry in the short line form but this wasn't just that. This had a ;pt more essays than I expected but I know that won't bother most readers and a lot of people will really love the books contents. This was very philosophical so if you like that I'd check it out.

Disclaimer: I read the arc of this on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Find this review on https://frameshifts.com/

Short-take Poetry Review: Propaganda’s Terraform (HarperOne, June 8, 2021)

Hip-hop humanism may not be your thing, but in this time of denial, back-biting, and betrayals we could do worse than pay attention to an artist determined to be a full-bodied Earthling who sees the land and its creatures as members of the family and the artifices of culture as something to change. We made culture, he says; then it made us. While we may be thinking about terraforming Mars, why not realize that what we made we can remake? Why not terraform the Earth into a place that invites all creatures to thrive? Or must we be stuck with zero-sum racism and gutter politics? Propaganda is the stage name of Los Angeles poet, musician, and performing artist Jason Petty, whom you may follow online. I particularly like the lyrical poem, “If coffee were a man.” Hear it here: https://sprudge.com/an-interview-with-coffee-loving-hip-hop-artist-propaganda-163946.html

#TERRAFORM #NETGALLEY
—Richard L. Rose, reviewing on https://frameshifts.com/

Read latest poems: PushBack Author site: https://formsofresistance.com/

I think this is more of a philosophical book than poetry, but it was enjoyable. The essays included were thought provoking and inspiring, all transformed into a consumable form by the author's approach and candor. The overall message that we create our own reality is something worth chewing on.

From the very first pages, I was drawn into Terraform like no other book I’ve read this year. Before reading, I had a small frame of reference for who Propaganda is. I follow him on social media and have tuned into his podcast, and I always appreciate what he has to say and his unique perspective.

The essays and poems in this collection are so visceral and honest. Each piece had me thinking and questioning and actively dismantling falsehoods we’ve been taught. It had me telling better stories.

The visual art in this book is absolutely stunning.

I will definitely be pre-ordering a final copy of this one.

This is a collection of true, raw and honest emotion. Some parts were chaotic and I LOVED IT. It doesn't fit with typical flow of poetry and that makes it unique and refreshing. I would definitely recommend this.

I received this ARC from @Netgalley in return for an honest review. Raw and inspiring. Really provokes the mind. There were times where I had to re-read a sentence or to but I think it made me like it even more because you can see how the words just flew from his heart and mind to the "paper."

Propaganda shares powerful vision through essays and poetry. Terraform is artistic, evocative, challenging, and transforming work. A well-written book worth talking about.

Classic Propganda writing in a book form. I have enjoyed his music for some time and it's good to hear his thoughts behind his lyrics. You don't have to understand every jot and tittle to get the main points that he is making. Propaganda makes you think, and not just feel, with his writing.

I heard the author speak a few years ago and he mentioned a number of the things he discusses in this book. It is exciting to see how his ideas have been fleshed out since then. It is intense, honest, generous, gut-punching, hopeful, joyous: the work of someone with their eyes wide open to all parts of life. I am so glad Prop wrote this and truly hope it gets the attention it deserves as both a piece to meditate on and simmer in, and as a call to concrete action.

It's difficult to describe the experience of Propaganda's "Terraform: Building a Better World." I began reading the book early this week, a particularly busy week for me professionally as I prepared for the opening of a project I've been working on that I hope will improve the lives of people with disabilities.

As I began the first few pages of "Terraform," I knew that this was a world I wanted to immerse myself in but I also knew this was not going to be a week that allowed such an immersion.

So, I'm not sure I got the full experience of "Terraform" that I wanted to have. This is a book I'm confident I will revisit, likely repeatedly, and so extraordinary was my experience with it that I found myself looking up Propaganda long before I'd finished the book.

I looked for Propaganda's projects, poetry, rap, writings, and Youtube videos. I looked to find anything that would tell me more about this creator whose work I'd somehow never experienced yet with whom I felt instantly connected both in terms of spirit and in terms of how we create. As someone who wrote my own memoir largely using poetry and essays, I immediately felt comfortable in Propaganda's structure here and I immediately fell into his heartfelt and intelligently realized rhythms of hope and truth and so much more.

There are phrases here, especially the phrases, that Propaganda uses that have become mantras for me this week. I've been meditating most of the week on what origin story I claim rather than the one I've long been fed. Perhaps it is just a sign of my own healing journey, but the simple concept of writing a better origin story leaves me with chills.

There are other moments in "Terraform" that left me in awe as Propaganda writes with accessible complexity and a resolute heart.

With "Terraform," Propaganda looks at the ways in which our world is broken through the lens of terraforming - creating a livable world out of an inhospitable one - and further explores how we can create a better world both internally and externally. Propaganda calls us into a more just and equitable world and then begins planting the seeds for growing this world.

I must admit I went into Propaganda's "Terraform" not quite sure what to expect. I leave this literary world ready to experience more of it and transformed by these words, ideas, and expressions of a creative heart and mind longing for a village of similar world creators. People often say it's never too late to pursue your dreams or to write a book, but I came away from "Terraform" believing it is never too late to write a better origin story and it's never too late to commit ourselves to creating a better world for everyone.

"Terraform" will, no doubt, be one of my favorite books of 2021.