Book Review Wednesday by Simone

Selected Poems
By Sophie Hannah (2006)

Review By Simone

This is an excellent book - a collection of 98 Sophie Hannah Poems. I don't really write book reviews. I prefer lists. So here are 5 reasons why I think you should read these poems.

1. They are easy to understand
My husband says that poetry makes him feel stupid. Excluded. Like he's been shut out of some intellectual club. Sophie Hannah's poems aren't like that. They are readable. Delightfully readable, and able to be understood and enjoyed quickly.

from When a Poet Loves a Composer

One look at him and I forgot
Embarrassingly soon
That music ought to have, if not
Lyrics, at least a tune...

2. They are witty and fun
Deliciously witty. You will laugh.

[A valentine's day text message in fewer than 160 characters, commissioned by O2, ]

Blank spaces count as characters. It’s true.
I wasn’t sure. And then I thought of you.

If People Disapprove of You...

Make being disapproved of your hobby.
Make being disapproved of your aim.
Devise new ways of scoring points
In the Being Disapproved Of Game. [cont]

3. She writes sonnets.
Who doesn't like a good sonnet?

4. Occasionally, there will be something really good.

Thoughtful. Cutting. Read Leaving and Leaving You.

5. If you read poetry, people will immediately think you're more intelligent than you really are.
This can be desirable. This Sophie Hannah anthology is a low-effort way of achieving the higher intellectual status that readers of poetry enjoy.
[Highbrow critics scoff at 'light' verse like this, but your friends won't know that!]

Even if you've not read a poem since High School, I think you should give these poems a go. I think you'll enjoy them.

Thanks for the review, Simone. Check out Simone's great blog, another something.