She Holds a Cosmos

A thoughtful and beautiful gift for the mothers in your life. As a mother of two toddlers, I wish I had "She Holds a Cosmos" years ago. So many of the joys and struggles of motherhood are conveyed in the short poems and gorgeous illustrations. This book is a wonderful outlet for mothers of all ages.

I was very much put off this book right from the start due to Kimiko Hahn’s introduction. The author says a male critic attempted “censorship” by negatively reviewing her book – that is not what censorship is. The book was already published and out in the world, and the critic (however rude or dismissive he may have been) was not attempting to have the book destroyed, or for the author to suffer any consequences for writing it. Criticism is not censorship. It is damaging to misuse a word like that.

Hahn then, for no apparent reason, goes on to condemn women who use toddler reins. There are many reasons someone might choose to use these, such as having a child with additional needs who cannot be taught not to run into the street, or being a parent with physical needs so you cannot physically hold or run after your child. It seems foolish to present a book as loving and celebrating all mothers, and then having this horrible and needless judgement again some mothers right there in the introduction. I’m not a mother and have never used toddler reins – but if I was, and I had, I would feel very judged by this introduction. It really left a bad taste in my mouth for the rest of the book.

Which is really a shame, because the poems are all great, and well selected. My favourites were ‘Outside the New Body’ by Keetje Kuipers, ‘Self Portrait in the Backyard as Mother’ by Nicole Cooley, ‘I Want the World’ by Brenda Shaughnessy, ‘Hours Days Years Unmoor Their Orbits’ by Rachel Zucker, ‘The Real Reason’ by Ada Limón, and ‘my mama moves among the days’ by Lucille Clifton – but there wasn't a bad poem in the whole book.

If I hadn't read the introduction and had only read the poems, it would be 5 stars. But I have to review the book as a whole.

The illustrations are 10/10! Loved them so much. However, the poetry in here felt very... simple? They read like poems one would right in school. Sure, some ideas were complex, but they had silly rhyming schemes and it just fell short for me. It is a great gift for a new mom, however. A simple coffee table book, or Instagram picture book.

The poems were stunningly written and adorably represented being a mother, but the introduction was unnecessarily judging and ignorant of other people's situations and disabilities

Though I am not a mom and don't particularly want children, I loved this book. It travels through pregnancy, infancy, toddler years, and on through childhood with an anthology of stories showcasing the diversity, complexity, and all that comes with motherhood. Having read other reviews, I took the introduction with a few grains of salt and really just skimmed over it to get to the poems. I'd suggest that others do the same. The poems are fantastic, the introduction isn't.
Thanks to #NetGalley and the publishers of #SheHoldsaCosmos for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A moment for Toi Derricote, Cathy Song& Keetje Kuipers, whose poems absolutely blew my mind. I enjoyed this anthology a lot, despite being neither a mother nor wanting to have kids. The journey this anthology traces—from early pregnancy, to childhood, frustration and else—is about motherhood, but also about mothers, about being a daughter and that curious link between us. Some poems were a bit irregular, but it is to be expected in such a diverse collection that blends classic and contemporary poets with such delicacy. The anthology itself, the arc it covers, the foreword, the art, were truly beautiful. I will say after the foreword I did expect what was promised: more diversity in the conception of motherhood, particularly non-biological, more queer or adoptee voices, which ultimately I didn't see. It's still a gorgeous book, though. Thank you NetGalley and Chronicle Books for allowing me to read this ARC!

beautiful.

I really enjoyed these poems about motherhood from pregnancy, to toddler years, and on. there's something so beautiful about motherhood and being able to see all of these feeling compiled toward it makes me love being a mother even more.

Hahn’s introduction threw me off the whole book with the talk about a male critic censoring the author’s work on motherhood. The introduction went on about the variety of ways someone can be a mother or mothering and then narrowed it back down to a particular type of motherhood. It was also judgemental towards mothers who use a harness on their toddlers which was surprising to read for a book supposedly celebrating all mothers.

A handful of the poems were good but the majority of the poems in this anthology were mediocre. The artwork by Karolin Schnoor was beautiful throughout and honestly the best part of this anthology.

I’m a mother myself but unfortunately this book was not for me. I found most of this book difficult to enjoy and I would not recommend it.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

She Holds a Cosmos: Poems on Motherhood 
Illustrated by Karolin Schnoor, Foreword by Kimiko Hahn, Edited by Mallory Farrugia
Publishing on: March 9, 2021
Rating 2/5

This is a lovely collection of poetry for any mother. This is a beautiful book and one I'll return to again and again.

Hahn’s introduction threw me off the whole book with the talk about a male critic censoring the author’s work on motherhood

I enjoyed this quite a bit. Wrapped in such tenderness and wisdom, each poem is a magical tribute to motherhood and to its accompanying joys, challenges, and complexities. I particularly liked that it emphasizes mother as a verb rather than circumscribing the word in a cage as something merely akin to biology and sex. Schnoor's beautiful illustrations made the experience more impactful and refreshing. The only problem with this is that it's too short. I would have liked it even better if the editor included some more poems. Nevertheless, this is a precious collection filled with so much poignancy and insight. For everyone who mothers, this one is for you.

Being a mother to an 18 month old and therefore stepping into motherhood fairly recently, I was excited to read this book. Whilst the illustrations are lovely and the concept of the book (ie poems related to motherhood /the journey of becoming a mother and what that might constitute) is great, the actual poems let down the concept. For me, the poems were just ok and I was disappointed. I wouldn’t recommend this book.

I thought this was an average read, I expected more philosophical or illusionary poetry. I think there was too much focus on motherhood as a biological sense especially when the book says that they are not intending to make it a biological function. I was not moved by any of the poems. So, I gave this book 3 stars because I thought it was average, not good but not bad.
Now the illustrations were amazing! My favorite part of this work was the illustrations. The illustrator did a fabulous job!

I did not like this book. It felt like it was trying wayyyy too hard. Some of the metaphors didn’t make sense and I just wasn’t a fan.

This book was sent to me as an ARC on NetGalley. However, all opinions are of my own.
This book is a re-collection of poems told through motherhood. The poems were written with love and tenderness and you could really understand the thoughts behind it. The illustrations throughout the book were beautiful too - I could imagine them as prints. Such a lovely book.

I received an advanced readers copy of this book thanks to @netgalley.

I really enjoyed this book and the poetry and loved all of the illustrations. I want to print them and hang them all over my home. The first image is the cover I received and the second is another image for the book. The poems were elegant and beautiful and I would love to give this to new mothers or as a mother's day gift. I wish there are had been more poems, but I also like the idea of it being a small collection which would make it a nice gift.

I didn't love the introduction. I didn't think it had the right flow or tone as the rest of the book. I think that part could have been done better.

She Holds a Cosmos illustrated by Karolin Schnoor offers touching poems about the nature of parenthood and being a mother. It is beautifully written and would make a wonderful gift for a parent or child.

I don’t normally review books without trying to take a snazzy photo of them first, but this book is its own work of art so instead I’m sharing some of the illustrations in it.
She Holds A Cosmos, Poems On Motherhood, is a collection of poems by a variety of authors with a foreword by Kimiko Hahn, and illustrated by Karolin Schnoor.
The anthology explores themes on motherhood from a variety of different voices: reluctant mothers, blissful mothers, and often, mothers afraid they’re not good enough. Overwhelmingly, there is a feeling of survival as your body and world are completely turned upside down, and I really felt that!
I love this line in the foreword in particular “when one is not permitted creativity, just expressing oneself is radical”.
Motherhood is all consuming, permission to fully be yourself is often withheld by virtue of just not having the time or mental space to do so, so it feels like an exploration of motherhood in poetic format is even more necessary than it would be in any other medium.
This would be a great option for any new mums (or older mums too!).
It’s a short but beautiful anthology, definitely one to get a physical copy of!
I’ve included a couple of my favourite poems if you want to swipe to read them.

With thanks to @netgalley for this advanced reader copy. She Holds A Cosmos is now available to buy.

A beautiful, earnest poetry collection covering all phases of motherhood. The poems are written by a number of women in a variety of styles. Gorgeous illustrations accompany the poems. Overall, a beautiful collection that would make a wonderful gift.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing this audiobook ARC.

I recommend this one to the moms out there. I am not a mother and did not connect with the poems that much, but I was able to grasp some of it. But I believe this one is for the mothers out there and that it will give them a lot.

‘She holds a Cosmos’ is a beautiful collection of poems about motherhood edited by Mallory Farrugia. Illustrations are by Karolin Schnoor and foreword by Kimiko Hahn.

The collection features over 25 emotional poems displaying joys and struggles of mother’s journey. Varied poets adeptly describe the highs and lows of motherhood.

Experiencing motherhood in a dream year/s before and holding and seeing her future child twenty years later is passionately portrayed in these lines:
‘A year ago, two, I dreamed I held a
Mirror to your unborn face and saw you
In the warped watery glass, not as a child
But as you will be twenty years from now’

A very thoughtful expression of her child inheriting earth shown here:

‘My child shall inherit earth
I swallow grains at dusk
Sweet with dew’

The intricacy of saying ‘goodbye’ and never knowing whether it’s the last time well displayed in ‘You never know , when you say goodbye, if it’s the last time
Last time for who? For what? ‘.

Memorable lines need mentioning like:

‘We said she was a negative image of me because of her
Lightness

She is light and also passage, the glory in my cortex

Daughter where did you get all that goddess?’

Among my favorite are ‘Motherload’, ‘Sleep Darling’, ‘She as a painter’, ‘Mother’s Day’, ‘Foreign Body’.

The illustrations are vivid and vibrant making it more beautiful.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy.

This was such a beautiful book. The illustrations and the poems were just splendid. Absolutely loved it.

First of all, thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
•
Even though I’m not a mother myself, nor am I planning on being one in the next couple of years, I really did enjoy reading these beautiful poems. I really enjoy reading different perspectives and I really adored the way all the raw emotions were expressed and portrayed throughout these beautiful pieces of poetry.

As previously stated it’s hard to fully related to these poems, and I found it more relatable from the perspective of a daughter, rather than the mother, it truly makes you think and appreciate the feelings and love mother’s express, often without your own knowledge. The emotions almost leap out of the page at you, and is just so thought provoking and moving in many ways. You can truly feel the pain and grief of in some and the irrevocable and undying love conveyed overall, it’s really uplifting to read.

Not only are the poems themselves breathtaking but the illustrations throughout are just as charming. They feel really wholesome and uplifting.

Overall, although I am not a mother, I still felt very touched to read such beautiful perspectives into motherhood and would recommend this to any parent, soon to be parent or just someone who enjoys beautiful poetry as a whole.