Inward by yung pueblo | Rating: ★★★☆☆

As a note, a copy of this novel was sent to me via NetGalley by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not effect my opinions in any way.

There's something I have to get off my chest about reviewers, re: modern poetry. You don't get to decide what is or isn't poetry. You're entitled to not like a certain style, you're entitled to not like a certain author or collection, but you're not entitled to defining what makes poetry. This, and I'm sorry if this is shocking for you, is not a style that has just popped up: it has been here for decades. You're just being pretentious when you should just be expressing the simple fact that it is not your cup of tea.

(And that's, as the kids say, the tea.)

Now that I've got your attention, and likely earned a scoff or glare, let's focus on Inward, shall we? I was not familiar with this collection before it was revised, so this was my first experience with the poets work. As with all forms of prose, I found Inward to be a deeply personal experience that kept me focused on the thoughts explored throughout the collection and there were many parts in which I found myself especially captivated by. The fact that so many reviewers still try to use "it sounds like Tumblr" as an insult is boring, but Inward is not. You're reading someone else's inner most personal thoughts and it shows, and you feel it, and you keep going.