I'm not a huge reader of poetry, but this book gripped me.
It's a slow read that takes time to digest in between , but I'm so very grateful for being able to read this ARC and the thoughts it provoked.
I WILL be ordering the book for our home library and I'm also thinking of gifting it to family and friends. THANK YOU, THANK YOU THANK YOU to Button Poetry for making this available for preview and the author Andrea Gibson for sharing their heart & mind with us.

"You Better Be Lightning" is powerful, comforting, and intensely imaginative. This collection of poems touches on themes of queer relationships, family, mental health, sexual assault, and healing. While I was reading, I could feel Gibson's internal growth as each page turned. There is a specific line from the poem "Time Piece" that says "Regret is a time machine to the past." This really encompasses the entire collection as a tribute to finding our way through the present. Fans of Neil Hilborn or Elaine Kahn will enjoy the long form and metaphor rich style.

My favorite poems are: "Every Time I Ever Said I Want To Die", "The Night Shift", and "Note To The Stranger Six Feet Away."

Thanks to NetGalley and Button Poetry for an advance copy of this book, which I totally adored.

I first encountered Andrea Gibson via Instagram, where a friend kept sharing their posts. So, I was aware that they had a book coming out, but I am embarrassed to admit that I was a little skeptical in a kind of reverse judge-a-book-by-its-cover way: I liked the cover (and the title!) so much, I feared that what’s between the pages might not be able to live up to the gorgeous artwork. I was wrong, this is one of my favorite books of the year!

This is such a phenomenal book, I read about a quarter of the galley and marched myself right over to the computer to buy a paper copy to keep (a signed copy actually, because those few poems turned me into a big fan.)

Gibson reminds me a little of a queerer, more self-reflective Billy Collins; the collection is imbued with the best kind of playfulness and literary accessibility. (Oh but when it gets serious, the emotion really lands, some of these really pack a wallop.) But many of the poems invite the reader in to play. The selections delight in a novel metaphor or a clever reversal of meaning between the lines. These poetic gymnastics are just supremely well-executed and so, so much fun as a reader.

Recommend this book highly to readers of poetry, or folks who suspect they might like poetry but haven’t tried it in a while. Recommend it especially to queer readers (but definitely not only to queer readers!). It would make a fantastic gift, is perfect for savoring in small doses, or kickstarting yourself out of a reading slump, or enjoying as a slim, delightful treat between heavier reads.

I don't read a lot of poetry but this collection intrigued me and I was not disappointed. It was absolutely gorgeous. I haven't previously read any of Andrea Gibson's poems but will 100% have to check them out because this book hit me hard.

This collection of poems is beautifully written, lyrical, hard-hitting, and most of all emotional. Every single poem (and letter) is dripping in emotion, it's visceral. A lot of these poems cover difficult and traumatic topics but in the most empathetic and whimsical way. A lot of the writing and subject matter is relatively simple but it just works. It makes the pieces all the more impactful.

I didn't love all the poems, some of them I didn't connect with at all but the ones that I loved more than made up for the ones I didn't favor, some of them just weren't for me.

I absolutely adored this collection of poems. It is very queer and very feminist, very loud and incredibly unapologetic and I loved it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Usually when I'm reading an ARC to review, I take a lot of notes while I read, so that no matter what I think of the book I'll have something to say after. While reading You Better Be Lightning, I took three notes during the first couple poems, and then absolutely forgot to take any more for the entire rest of the book. I was just so sucked into the poems that all I could do was read them. There were a couple footnotes I found hilarious that I took screenshots of, but just because I loved them so much, not for the review.

So many of the poems in this book took my breath away, and it was so hard not to share them with any of my friends. I can't wait for this book to come out so that I can tell them to read it.

I didn't love every poem, but I loved most of them, and I loved some of them a *lot*. I'm so glad I got the opportunity to read this book; thank you to Netgalley and Button Poetry for the chance to read and review this ARC.

I was so excited to read this book and I was not disappointed. This was a beautiful collection of poetry by Andrea. The cover is amazing and caught my attention. I enjoyed reading the poems. Some of the poems were a bit long and went on for pages. However, I kind of think it helped the book. You can really tell that these poems are incredibly personal.

Some of the poems broke my heart while some left me thinking about what I read for a while. If you decide to read this book, please note that there are some content that can be difficult to read such as sexual assault, self-harm, domestic violence, suicide, and homophobia.

I’m delighted to be discovering Andrea Gibson’s poetry for the first time (whilst simultaneously annoyed that I didn’t know about it sooner). Love, love, love— I’m in love!

This collection is overwhelming, it’s gorgeous, it’s heartbreaking, it’s joyful, and, most of all, it’s human. Oh, it reeks of humanity, of perfect imperfections, of lightness and darkness. It’s rare for me to find a collection that hooks me in so thoroughly. I felt so much excitement reading “...Goosebumps”. I thought, oh wow, this is for me. That sentiment remained throughout.

I’ve marked so many different sections to revisit. Pages and pages of lines I thought were so gorgeous or so impactful, I couldn’t bear to think I wouldn’t look at them again. I won’t quote any here, as I feel the pleasure of discovering them fresh is too precious to play with.

Finally, can I just say, queer representation and identity exploration means a hell of a lot to me. It’s steeped so deeply in these pages, it’s like a (pleasant) slap to the face. A love tap? A big rainbow shooting directly into your eyeballs. Lightning in your veins. Again, I loved it. There’s no doubt I’ll read it again.

A friend of mine read an early copy of this one and their review just made me want to immediately get it, except it wasn't out yet. So, my thanks go to Button Books and NetGalley early in this review because I am so so SO grateful to have been able to get my hands on an ecopy to read.

This collection is an arrow straight to my heart - it hurt, and I saw myself in it, and I felt things that I hadn't experienced first-hand, and sometimes I just damn revelled in the writing. Andrea is an incredibly talented poet, and I found myself reading quite a few of the poems in this collection out loud to my wife, just so I could love them all over again (I may have to preorder a physical copy, too, so I can do this all the time). Favourites of mine included: Instead of Depression, My Gender is the Undoing of Gender, Love Letter to the Tick that Got Me Sick, and See This Through. Though, honestly, this collection is just so fantastic that I don't know that I even need to mention specific poems.

I find that I can't really describe how this collection made me feel - within the space of one poem, I could be in awe at their writing, close to (or actually in) tears, laughing, and then thinking about my past and my future. I know I sound a little gushy, but I honestly loved this collection so much that I think I NEED to be a bit gushy - a few of these poems need to be dog-eared, and scribbled on, and then tucked close away in my heart so I can get them out and look at them sometimes, and just remember myself a bit more.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

"I will refuse to call it heaven
if the people I love
(who put me through hell)
aren’t there."

I can’t tell you honestly what made me decide to pick up this book. I don’t know of the author or even really read poetry. But I am really glad I did.

"Bitterness is the easiest way
to leave this world having had only
a near-life experience."

There is profound beautiful elegant truth in Gibson’s words. There are words and lines and full poems that just spoke to my osul. To the parts of me that have felt grief and loss and love. I practically highlighted half of the book in an effort to remind myself of the parts of the book that spoke the most to me.

Gibson’s poetry was powerful. It punched me in the gut with its truth. Especially “Queer Youth are Five Times More Likely to Die By Suicide”. It hurt. And yet, it stayed with me, long after I turned the page.

I found myself looking out the window, pondering, feeling…just absorbing after every poem. I didn’t want to digest it too quickly, and forget something, gloss over something she wrote. I wanted to feel it all. I wanted to understand it all. I wanted to just exist in this book, at that time, in that moment forever

"INSTEAD OF DEPRESSION
try calling it hibernation.
Imagine the darkness is a cave
in which you will be nurtured
by doing absolutely nothing."

I identify with Gibson as a person, an an inhabitant of this blue marble, as a girl in search of love. There is distance between Gibson and I, in age and in time and in experiences, but her words fill every gap between us.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this collection in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. I cried at the very first poem—very unexpected emotional response to… relatively simple things?—and after that I was just gone. I’m still a little in shock to be honest, at how they’ve managed to illicit such an emotional response out of me multiple times throughout this collection—tears <I>and</I> laughter. More often than not in the same bloody poem.

Queer and political and feminist, Profound as fuck, and beautiful and visceral and real in a way that hurts but also heals. I’m definitely going to search out their spoken word albums.

Would recommend this collection wholeheartedly—a champion of the unkillable <I>YES</I>

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this collection in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. I cried at the very first poem—very unexpected emotional response to… relatively simple things?—and after that I was just gone. I’m still a little in shock to be honest, at how they’ve managed to illicit such an emotional response out of me multiple times throughout this collection—tears <I>and</I> laughter. More often than not in the same bloody poem.

Queer and political and feminist, Profound as fuck, and beautiful and visceral and real in a way that hurts but also heals. I’m definitely going to search out their spoken word albums.

Would recommend this collection wholeheartedly—a champion of the unkillable <I>YES</I>

I started crying on page one.

Good poetry should stop you in your tracks; great poetry should stop your breath and move you beyond words.

Lots of people, online especially, fancy themselves poets. Gibson displays true talent expressed through impressive craft. These poems have been composed with care. The incredible outpouring of emotion is balanced with a brevity in form. No lines appear here unless they are essential.

I highly recommend these highly anticipated poems. I am very grateful for the ARC. Many congratulations to Andrea Gibson! This collection is stunning.

I have used Andrea Gibson's poetry (or excerpts of it) as writing prompts for people of all ages, from 13 to 75, and it always opens the writers to honesty and catharsis. This collection "You Better Be Lightning" may be one of my favorite Gibson collection as it shows their ability to mix heartbreaking topics--including suicide, mental illness, and homophobia--with humor *without* dismissing the pain. I can't wait to share some of the newer poems with my students.

Magical?! Blindingly profound “queer, political, and feminist” book I am so happy I decided to read even though the cover put me off because I LOVED loved this! I am certain that this could even be life-saving for someone out there and I hope so much that they come across this. Almost feel bad for rating this (but I will for my personal record) because of just how sincere this book is, and how wonderful that I want to re-read this already. Even if it got too cheesy (eeeek) for me sometimes, it retained its authenticity, which is what matters! This took me on a beautiful journey and I am so thankful. Subscribed to their newsletter, followed them on instagram and cannot wait to read more of their work! I love to love.

“I know there is medicine in knowing / how much we don’t know. I know / there are answers in being awestruck.”

Thank you to NetGalley and Button Poetry for providing me with a free e-ARC of You Better Be Lightning by Andrea Gibson, in exchange for review.

I have read and loved two of Andrea Gibson’s other poetry collections, Patsy, and Lord of the Butterflies. I find reading Gibson to be a full body experience. My eyes, whilst simultaneously gobbling up all their delicious words, are also constantly brimming with, and often spilling tears. My mouth, agape, gasping, or laughing. My emotional self, ignited over and over, as the poems wash over me in all their raw realness. My skin, constant goosebumps. Once you read the first poem of this collection, you will know why I felt Andrea must have been snooping around in my brain while writing this collection.

In You Better Be Lightning, Gibson speak on themes of queerness (both gender and sexuality), on climate change, on the beauty of the world, on abuse (yes, I do recommend checking trigger warnings before embarking), on grief, on therapy, and much more. As dark as these topics might seem, you will find humour within these pages, sometimes wry, always sharp. Often just when you need it the most. Gibson’s poems give a tantalisingly intimate peek into their life, their loves, their pain, and their growth and change over the years.

I will admit I am not a big poetry reader, and I think that considering that, my ability to connect to Gibson’s work speaks volumes. It is conversational and easy to approach. Gibson is a story-teller. I am never left reading lines over and over trying to figure out what they even mean, like I find I am when I try to read some styles of poetry. Don’t get me wrong, I read the lines over and over, but it’s because I love them and want to absorb them into me.

I especially love Gibson’s use of language. Their wordplay has always delighted me, the way they use homonyms and spin them into fantastic metaphors and imagery. Their craft and skill is tremendous.

You Better Be Lightning is Andrea Gibson at their best. Raw, relatable, emotional, fierce, beautiful, and with a delightful spark of humour. I whole-heartedly recommend this collection, and I can’t wait to get the chance to recommend this to my library patrons once released.

I must honestly admit that what first drew my attention towards this poetry collection were the cover and the title of the book. How gorgeous, right? And I could not be more grateful to have discovered Andrea Gibson’s work. Their style and way with words is incredible.

Obviously not every single one of the poems spoke to me (and that is the beautiful thing about poetry, in my opinion, that everyone can find verses that speak to them, and often in different ways), but they were all so personal and raw and emotional. I found myself laughing at some lines, and crying at others - and that’s something very special in my opinion.

The topics that the author chose to write about are all of such imminent importance as well, and I would recommend everyone to read this collection of powerful and empowering poetry.

My only point of criticism stems from a personal preference, and that is the length of the poems. Most of them easily spanned 3 pages, which is a bit long for my taste - but like I said, that’s a completely personal thing.

4.5/5 stars.

I hadn't read poetry in a long time, so I'm happy to get the opportunity to do it again.
These poems are very powerful. For one of them, I knew I would be crying just by reading the title.

Thank you netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for a review.

A big thank you to Net Galley for providing me with a review copy of this book in exchange of an honest review! I have never read anything else by Andrea Gibson and I just found this to be one of my greatest mistakes. "You Better Be Lightning" by Andrea Gibson is a very personal poetry collection, which focuses on the rawness of our experiences and emotions as well as the labyrinth of love and life. From the very first poem, I just knew that this is a 5-stars read. This book is immaculate in the way it feels like a warm and very much needed hug from an old hug and at the same time it is incredibly candid, powerful and realistic. The dynamic and the structure of the poetry collection are astonishing, I felt like I am traveling through the author's thought/writing process just by reading. While the poems were very deep and personal, they were not overbearing and did not mess with the reader's brain, which makes Gibson's poetry so easy to connect with. Trigger warnings include mental illness, depression, grief, chronic illness, climate apocalypse, self-harm, sexual assault, homophobia, domestic violence, etc. After reading this short review, you most probably understand that "You Better Be Lightning" is not simply a literary work, it is an experience, but I would also like to mention that it makes the reader feel whole, An absolute must-read for any poetry lover out there!

Was a good short read I really enjoyed. I usually don’t like poems that long but I think she did a great job keeping you interested.

dnf @ 17%. i am officially done reading poetry. it's so forgettable and half the time i don't even understand what the author is trying to say or what's the meaning behind this and that. i tried, but now i am giving up on poetry altogether 😂