Make Believe: Poems for Hoping Again by Victoria Hutchins is a wonderful read. This is my first exposure to Victoria Hutchins' poems, and I want more!

Hutchins is gifted at expressing the essence of emotions and self-talk. She realistically captures a wide variety of issues that we tend to struggle with and the darkness we may find ourselves in as a result. Yet as thoroughly as she puts herself into that place, she finds and shines a beam of hope for each situation. In my humble opinion, hope is something we all need more of.

Highly recommended!

My thanks to Convergent Books for allowing me to access a DRC via NetGalley. Publication is 3/18/25. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and are freely given.

As soon as I saw Victoria Hutchins was writing a book, I knew I’d need it. Thanks to NetGalley and Convergent Books for the ARC!!

Wow, wow, wow. This book pulled all of my heartstrings, and I’d absolutely recommend it. Broken into five sections, this collection of poetry explores the world with five different perspectives.

And who doesn’t love a Mary Oliver epigraph?

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

Make Believe: Poems for Hoping Again is a beautiful, sentimental, and relatable poetry collection that is relatable and offers hope when feeling left in the dark.
Each poem was almost like a balm to the soul, offering a light in the dark and hope for the future. This collection made me feel less alone and comforted and is definitely a book I want to get in physical format so I can pick it up again and again when I'm feeling alone and vulnerable. Victoria has a beautiful way of weaving her experiences, thoughts, and feelings into words and I look forward to reading more from her in the future.

I LOVEEEE Victoria Hutchins, and have been listening to her read these poems on instagram for months. I am SO SO excited to finally have this poetry collection in my hands.

Victoria has the way of making you feel heard when never having met you. She writes about incredibly relatable topics, in ways that are beautiful but easy to understand.

This collection is such a beautiful blend of comfort and reassurance, written in a way that feels like a warm hug for the soul. The words resonate deeply, offering solace during moments of uncertainty and reminding the reader that they are not alone, it is a treasure for anyone seeking comfort, understanding, or simply a reminder of the beauty in life's small, tender moments🖤

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a beautiful read. Girlhood is having its moment and this took me even further into my childhood where everything was tender and fixable and all we did was chase joy. The author put a magnificent magnifying glass on the Patriarchy. There were so many subjects she touched on relating to the human condition. These poems left me with a warm sense that it’s going to be okay.

Oh my goodness - this is the most beautiful book of poetry. I cried my eyes out so many times reading these - it is so relatable for the millennial women who still feels like she hasn't figured life out or is feeling a bit behind. It has been a hard year, but this book of poetry helped me see the light even in the most difficult situations. I will absolutely be buying myself a copy when this comes out. Thank you for sharing your words with the world, Victoria!

This really hit with me a lot. It had me crying over the pages, and the way things were worded really just made such an impact. I have so many highlights and lines I have revisited already. It goes into some heavier topics, but there is still a layer of hope that shines through.

Poetry is always very hard to rate because it feels very dependent on what kind of mindset you can have going into it, but I do think this is a collection that is worth reading.

I LOVED this one. I requested it at the perfect time after feeling a little hopeless after the election and it helped me feel good again. It was fun and was a reminder of childhood at the same time. I wish it was being released this month, it would be the perfect time.

i’ve seen victoria’s videos all over the internet and have always felt so seen by her words. i sent one of her videos to my friend this morning before I got the email about my netgalley arc. for some reason, it was until i was in tears after i finished reading this collection of poems did it click for me who victoria was.

i love her writing because of how comfortable it makes me feel. it feels like the meat of the conversations i havewith my friends. it’s the gentle reminders i need to be kinder to myself. its holding the hand of my inner child and going for a stroll.

nothing in this collection is revolutionary in the sense that it’s a new idea but it’s revolutionary in the sense that i constantly need these reminders.

I've been following Victoria on instagram for a while now and I was SO excited when she announced a book of poetry. It did not disappoint. If you enjoy her social media content, you will devour her book. I can't wait to buy it.

Thanks to the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my review.

Great book of little quick poems to distract from the world. Recommend to any forward thinking millennial woman who contemplates their life choices and how we got to this point.

I really enjoyed this collection. I thought it was very inspirational and emotional. It talked about various stages of life and love without it being too abstract or too heavy handed. I'm looking forward to this authors future works. This is one I will buying upon its release date.

I don't care who you are or what kind of poetry you like - I think you should read this.

I consider a collection of poems a win if 70% of them resonate. This was almost 100 (and only because I don't think it'll ever be 100.)

One of my favorite parts was about how we have all these different words to describe the changes of the moon (waxing, waning, crescent) but the moon doesn't care. She's never anything but whole.

I've sent a few of these poems to friends and when the book comes out I will be sending a copy to them all.

Read it, savor it, feel it. THIS is my kinda poetry, man.

It's actually hard rating poetry books because we all relate to each differently. Our experiences and current circumstances more often than not affect how we perceive each line written. What may be true for me might not be for others.

I felt like someone else might appreciate this poetry book more than me. I liked it but I felt like I am not the exact target audience for the whole collection. I quite liked the undertone of hope being doled out and how the collection when from childhood to adulthood. It relied on memories and made me look back on my own past of what I liked when I was a kid, the little things that gave me joy, the simple hopes I had growing up... it was a good walk down memory lane. It made me relieve that yes, life really changed me and if I just remember all the wonderful hope I had back then, maybe it could give me more reason to find simple joys in my present too. Nice read all in all!

I always love reading poetry. The other has a unique style and enjoyed reading her thoughts.
This was very moving and emotional. It sparked a fire in me to move past the things that I have let hold me back.

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House for the email inviting me to read this wonderful poetry debut. I absolutely loved it. I connected with each section on a different, equally-important level. From thoughts on god, on grief, on friendships, body-image and self-love, every poem gave me something to reflect upon.
This is one I would love to have for my shelves, and to read from time-to-time.

I loved this book of poems, they were diverse and interesting and easily accessible without being simple or glib. There was something so hopeful and nostalgic about the poems, even ones tackling bigger, heavier topics. The collection of poems, as a whole, feel like they follow an birth-to-death type arc.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and I'll definitely be purchasing a physical copy in March when the book is published because I enjoyed the poems that much and because the cover is perfect.

Favorite poems included: Welcome to the World, sugarcoat, I have bad news and good news, Shapeshifter, so relatable, my body's keeper, and you're going to die, so live.

I will definitely be recommending this book especially because of the nostalgia it brings about childhood and feelings of joy. The author did an amazing job at evoking feelings with every single piece. The first chapter of the book was my favorite, but all of it came together so nicely. I can not wait for the print version of this book to be published. It will be the perfect book to give annotated as a gift!

Thank you NetGalley and Convergent Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A very quick read but beautifully put together. A couple of the poems caught me enough to tear up which, for me, is a great book of poetry. Of course like most books of poetry you need to be in the correct headspace and heart space to appreciate it fully, but it was right time and place for me.