Sweet and Predictable
By Christiana Guarino
Amazon Digital Services, Inc., $3.99, 114 pages
Rising Sunrise by Christiana Guarino is a collection of short fiction and poetry from the author and includes selections written by her mother, Linda Mata. Both women are poets in their own right, but often collaborate in their collections.
This collection seems similar to their other works. Most of it was written while Guarino was in elementary and high school. So much of the early work is indeed her early work. The language is simplistic, yet polished. Overall the poems are inspirational with simple language, predictable “poetical” language and rhymes and largely sentimental. Larger themes for the entire collection include historical events, family, holidays, odes to loved ones passed on and inspirational sentiment. There are also many mentions of light, night, god, love, peace, grace, beauty, friends, race, childhood and weather. Overall it seems skillful for a young author and perfectly acceptable for an inspirational poet.
“I wonder what it would be like to glide through the stars
To feel the dancing of the wind upon me
Touching the skies
With an invisible crown.”
One criticism of this collection is in regard to its organization. The first part is obviously credited to Guarino. Then comes a section credited to Mata. It is not clear, once that section ends, who authors the remaining sections. While this in no way detracts from the collection, it could confuse the reader who was trying to follow a narrative thread through the book.
Structure aside, this seems like a solid collection of simple, inspirational poems. The topics are predictable, as are the rhymes, written with such sweetness that they are almost saccharine. The writers display good use of rhyme and exploration of meter. Those who prefer these types of poems might appreciate this book.
Reviewed by Axie Barclay
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