Dnf @70%. I could not for the life of me focus or relate to the poems. I wish I could have but I sadly just couldn't.

Poems for a Lost Lover is a dive into the middle of a relationship, on the cusp of deciding whether a baby should be had before its too late. There are a lot of great images and simple language that makes it accessible to all, even those who typically avoid poetry. The poems are short, and the entire collection can be read in less than an hour.

The biggest issue I had with reading this is the format of the digital copy. While I don't like to nitpick on formatting issues, poetry relies on the negative space as much as the words to convey specific messages. Using page breaks between each poem would have made it much easier to read. I felt like I raced through reading this because all of the poems were smashed together with little spacing between.

This was a beautiful, delicate story of longing and heartbreak. Some of the poetry in the book were very poignant. The poetry is relatable for a lot of women.

This pain is gone now, but the slowness. Senses coming back and the moans. But memories must be gone now before the morning arrives. There is a fierce light of burning in all the poems and the falling sparks of each one remembering a man lying dead in the corner of a starving mind. It may be light and all shapes of light but it must have been sold and passed on to what should have been next.
Lovely and broken.
Hadi Atallah, author of 'Rosemary Bluebell.'

From the depth of generosity and passionate longing “Poems for a Lost Lover” (2020) is authored by Erica Stevens, recalling her relationship with an avoidant lover, who seemed to be present with her only in brief superficial moments, unable to connect or return the love she felt for him. Despite this, Stephens conveys her truth in a thoughtful and hopeful manner that may resonate with readers.

Early on, we learn in the poem “Love Note” that Stephen’s will not be taken to be introduced to his mother. It becomes obvious that he doesn’t deserve the Pea Salad she prepares for him using his mother’s recipe. Later, his suggestion that they have a child together is casual and cruel—perhaps he sensed the desperate ticking of her biological clock, as she mourned for a baby she couldn’t have. Stephen’s observed: “a mother’s love is/always rooted in sacrifice/generation after/generation after/generation” This sacrifice Stephen’s writes about is naturally meant for (her) child, not her lover. In the sweet maternal poem for her mythological daughter “Mabelynn”- Stephen’s reflects on the impossibility of having a child with a man that doesn’t love her.
As her lover gradually slipped away, there was no lingering rage or anger towards him. Stephen’s calmly reflected that the lover he remembered ceased to exist. In the poem “Timing” the wheels of time align with souls that sync, the sense of evolving trust was the missing component, the math didn’t add-up, she already knew this on every level. Still, this didn’t stop her from wishing they had traveled to New Orleans; simply to ride the St. Charles Avenue Trolley-- “Streetcar” eases into the closing poem, symbolic of her relationship, of the revolving comings and goings of people in general, in and out the door.

The poems in this collection were featured with “Paintings for a Lost Lover” Exhibited at the Ro2 Art Gallery in Dallas, Texas (2020). Erica Stephens completed her MFA at the Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angles, CA. (2007) - she teaches Art Appreciation to college students, and lives in Dallas Texas. ~ ** ( 3* GOOD) With Thanks to BooksGoSocial via NetGalley for the DDC for the purpose of review.

Ehhh, this is better than the high profile "poetry" of say, Rupi Kaur, but I just didn't enjoy it.

It's not just prose with the space bar breaking up words at random intervals which is good, and there's some smooth playing around with language and phrases, but ultimately I did just feel like I was reading someone's poetry in English class or their Instagram captions.

Beautifully written poems of a woman’s love affair at a time in her life where her body is changing.An intimate involving look at a love affair at the hurt of its ending as life goes on.# netgalley#booksgosocial

On the surface the poems appear simple. However, they carry deep meaning about the changes in a woman's life.

Poems for a Lost Lover is a very less scrutinized book with direct messages in short words.

Few poems were very impactful and the others, although not so striking, I was able to get the message of the poet.

The format and the themes and the writing style is very similar to that of Charles Bukowski.

An honest, touching, emotional insight into the the mind of "a southern woman chronicling a casual but passionate love affair at the end of her fertility"

Beautifully written as poetic chapters that can be read in one sitting as it tells a story but also, each poem is perfectly capable of coming into its own as a standalone poem.

Mabelynn for me stands out as a particularly well written perspective into a subject that could be true and relatable for many women as the hurt and pain is felt upon reading it