I really enjoyed this collection! The poems are simple and beautiful but have more depth than a lot of poety books I've read recently. I'm definitely looking forward to revisiting this one in the future and sharing it with other poetry lovers.

I love opting to read poetry in between other genres as a palette refresh, and Many Small Hungerings was a perfect collection to pull me out of a slump.
The collection explores a range of themes, such as grief and loss, and while the topic matter is heavy, its beautifully written, and symbolic.

Thanks Netgalley for a copy of this arc!

This poetry is raw, vulnerable, and lovely. There is beautiful imagery throughout that reminds me of summer nights in the Midwest. The emotions present in the poetry are a mixture of grief, longing, and hope. I absolutely loved the way some of Will’s poetry made me meditate and ponder the fragility and beauty of the human experience.

📚Themes and tone: melancholy | grief | the fragility of life | love and vulnerability | longing | healing | hope

Another good poetry book I've read. This one also has great pieces probably some more better than the previous ones I've read.

"the only thing holier than perfection is carrying more grief than you are capable of lifting"

I have mixed feelings about this poetry collection. The main themes of this book are grief and longing, written in a very reflective tone, and these themes can be felt throughout the whole collection. Unfortunately, I think that might be what didn't work for me. Most of the poems are about longing, lacking, and wishing, which leads me to feel like a lot of the book sort of lacked concrete subject matter. It felt a bit draining to repeatedly read poems about what the author doesn't have. I also found that certain words and metaphors were a bit repetitive (birds, flowers).

That being said, I thought the use of line breaks, figurative language, and descriptive language was really creative and demonstrated a very fresh poetic voice. It was very clear how the author was feeling and thinking while assembling this collection. I think the poems that really shined for me were the ones in which the author was more vulnerable and less abstract about the subject matter.

I think the author is a good writer, but sometimes felt a little distant or elusive from his own poems. Like I was reaching to try to find any tangible subject matter or narrative point. Some poems felt more like being "talked to" rather than "shared with". Narrowing down some of the poems and focusing on the really strong ones might have been helpful, or even combining some of the similar poems to cut down on repetitiveness.

Overall, a decent read, but one that I struggled to find my heart really invested in. It definitely inspired me to experiment a bit in my own writing, specifically with line breaks and descriptive language, and I am looking forward to seeing what this author releases in the future!

A lovely collection of short but powerful poetry. Simply written, succinct, and yet leaves a lot for the reader to ponder.

Title: Many Small Hungerings
Author: William Bortz
Genre: Poetry
Rating: 4.00
Pub Date: May 9, 2023

I received a complimentary eARC from Andrews McMeel Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. #Gifted #Ad

T H R E E • W O R D S

Lyrical • Genuine • Complex

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Many Small Hungerings is the newest collection of poignant poetry from writer and poet William Bortz. In his follow-up to 2021’s The Grief We Are Given, Bortz dives even deeper into the complexities of grief and loss, as well as the ever-elusive grip of nostalgia and memory.

💭 T H O U G H T S

This is my second collection of poetry from William Bortz, and I must say I felt as though his writing style has evolved. Another possibility is that my own personal grief has evolved to a point where I am better able to appreciate, grasp and hold understanding better.

Poetry is a highly personal writing form, yet I managed to connect deeply with many of these poems. Written in a variety of lengths, Bortz explores the small intimate life moments with sincere emotion. Each of the poems has its place, and some of them made me stop for long moments of pause to reflective. The depth of feeling varies from one poem to the next, and in some way he has managed to dig even deeper into the complexities of life and grief.

Exploring themes of love, life, loss, grief and healing, Many Small Hungerings invites the reader to live in the present. It emphasizes the all encompassing depths of grief, yet the possibility of living with it. A nostalgia of the past to allow space for the now. I'm sure I'll come back to these poems from time to time.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• poetry lovers looking for something unfiltered
• readers craving deep thought
• grievers

⚠️ CW: grief, death

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

(poem)
GRASPING
when a name becomes past tense
only the wind can carry it
and we spend an entire lifetime
grasping onto that wind

As I delved into William Bortz's Many Small Hungerings, I was struck by the raw emotion and depth of feeling in each poem. Bortz explores themes of love, longing, and loss with such skill that I found myself deeply moved by his words. This collection is a follow-up to his previous work, The Grief We Are Given, and it takes the reader even deeper into the complexities of grief and memory.

I appreciated the variety of styles and forms in the poems, which kept the reading experience fresh and engaging. Though this is not a lighthearted collection, I found it to be a necessary exploration of difficult emotions that are often hard to express. The poems have stayed with me long after I finished reading, and I highly recommend Many Small Hungerings to anyone who craves poetry with profound, expressive meaning.

i appreciated the theme of short and pithy poems, but sometimes i felt like i was scrolling through an endless list of regurgitated tropes in poetry that you find on instagram, y'know? like i didn't feel like i found a new perspective from reading this collection, and it didn't give me goosebumps, which is how i really mark whether or not a collection is going to be one of my favorites. pretty nice if you're looking for tamer, quiet, and caring poetry; i personally prefer something with a little more bite.

What a beautiful collection of poems. The descriptive imagery drew me in and made it difficult to leave once finishing the book. I wanted to keep reading more and more. I don’t read poetry as often as I should, but this collection I want to keep close to me.

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

Beautiful collection of poems. The author's emotion is so clear and well expressed through the writing. This collection hits hard at the deepest parts of your heart. Raw and unfiltered. Especially love the Phoebe Bridgers reference in Ode to Punisher.

This collection of poems reflects so many deep feelings that are hard to express. I enjoyed reading this collection immensely. It was a quick read for sure. However, some of these poems have stuck with me. This is a great read for those who enjoy poetry with deep meanings. There is not any funny poems in this one.

Read if you enjoy:
Poetry
Deep thoughts
Simplicity

Thank you Andrew McMeel Publishing for the ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own!

I loved reading this, and it was a good read! The writing style is great, and I liked the varying lengths. I didn’t connect to most of the poems, but they were still good.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher!

Unfortunately, this was not for me. I was not engaged in the collection and many of them felt repetitive or rambling, which is not usually what I go for when reading poetry. Kudos to the author for baring his soul on the page, but this was not the collection for me.

Many Small Hungerings was a poetry collection full of beautiful prose and interest and inspiring messages. Very enjoyable.

A beautiful collection of poems about love, beautiful descriptions of nature as well. I found these poems to be well done and I enjoyed how longer poems were juxtaposed next to shorter ones and vice versa. The collection was arranged well and I found some of the poems particularly moving and relatable.

Very gorgeously written poetry exploring loss and yearning. Short verse format, so it’s easy to read in one sitting

This review is made possible through accessing an advanced copy of "Many Small Hungerings" through Net Galley.

3.5 stars- I related to a few poems in this collection which I really enjoyed. But other times I didn't understand them which bothered me.
I found some poetry is hard to read because it's cliche but i did not get that with this poetry!

I would love to see other work by this author

A very well written collection of poems that speak of love and loss, grief and healing, I enjoyed reading it and would recommend it to my fellow poetry readers.

There were a few of these poems that resonated. Unfortunately though, I didn't understand or relate to most of them.

I do like the style of writing and would potentially pick up another collection from this author.