Slow but unique, it clearly highlighted that for black communities mental illness is still a taboo and thanks to the author's reflections made it more than clear that it is a space to listen, empathizing and learning about the ups and downs of living without good access to mental health.

These are personal poems dealing with mental illness written in a conversational style. I enjoyed Mirrors are my Enemy for its distinct voice and tone which, unlike the other poems, has a note of positivity.
Thank you to the publisher and poet for an advanced copy.

3.5/5 stars

"Duality is necessary
Yet, it is tearing me in two.
The only thing I truly want
Is to fully love,
and to be loved too."

This poetry collection centers around the poet's issue with mental illness. I could definitely relate to some of the poems. I wish there were more positivity with some of the poems because it's pretty dark to read, but overall enjoyed this.

I received this free from Netgalley to review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
This short book is filled with poetry and short essays about the author's struggles with various mental illnesses. She conveys her point that one is not alone in their struggles. I'm not a big fan of poetry so I did get more out of the short essays.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Unfortunately, I wasn't impacted by this book as much as I expected. I appreciated the honest discussion of mental illness, stigma, and suicidal thoughts, which are drawn from the author's own experience. The story is told through a series of poems and short essay-style prose chapters, the majority of which felt stilted and awkwardly written. Metaphors and symbolism seemed thrown in for the sake of being there rather than to impact the storytelling. There were long, repetitive chapters filled with simplistic writing followed by sudden bursts of figurative language (some of which I enjoyed). The ending was also depressing and vague; after being in the narrator's head for 70 pages I hoped for a clearer resolution to her story.