Cover Image: Draw Me After

Draw Me After

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Member Reviews

the book is nice and flowing but it didn't keep me glued to the pages like others. despite this, I found it a very enjoyable read and would gladly read it again.

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Through a study of the Hebrew alphabet, Peter Cole examines language, spirituality and humanity in this collection of poetry.

The more poems I read in this collection, the greater of a disconnect I felt with this collection. It was less to do with the topics Cole explored, but rather the way he constructed his poems. There was an awkward combination of modernity and antiquity in the makeup of the poems and with that, I failed to identify with this book which went beyond the theme of the collection being unfamiliar.

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A collection of slender poems that toy a little with language, but feels like little stutters (like the patterns wavelets leave in the sand?).


There are some nice sonic moments, as in:

"and now it’s sand / or standing water / rippled under / stippled clouds"

Peter Cole. Draw Me After (Kindle Locations 127-129). Kindle Edition.


There are also incredibly peaceful moments:

"In all we do there’s at least an eighth / of a part of death. It isn’t heavy. / What easy, secret grace we bear it with, / wherever we go. Through beautiful waking, / and walks, in lovers’ talk, and into / distraction, forgotten deep in our being— / it’s with us always. And isn’t heavy."

Peter Cole. Draw Me After (Kindle Locations 261-265). Kindle Edition.


These poems are meditations, conversations, pieces taken from the Hebrew alphabet and rolled around in the palm of the reader's hand.

It's good work, and I appreciate it for that.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Peter Cole’s “Draw Me After” is a clever collection of poetry and drawings. Nimble and versatile in vocabulary, Cole plays with the meanings of words and layers them creatively. In his series exploring the Hebrew alphabet, Cole uncovers the nature of language through symbols, personifying each letter while exposing the characteristics and expectations imposed upon them. His series of drawings and corresponding poetry combine word play and symmetry, often engaging with visual elements. Overall, Cole’s is a collection that is rich in language and quick in its wordplay.

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Please take this review with a grain of salt, because I'm going to be honest. After reading this book, I still am confused. The writing is definitely new to me and unfortunately not for me. All entries feels like stream of consciousness to me and I definitely didn't like that kind of writing.

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