Why I Scream in Verse: At the World | Isha Snehal | Book Review

POEMS: 4/5
THEME: 4/5
ILLUSTRATIONS: 3.5/5
ENTERTAINMENT QUOTIENT: 4/5

My Musings

From utter dislike to indifference to marginal acceptance to actually enjoying, my feelings towards poetry have undergone a drastic change in the last couple of years.

As a child, I dabbled in a bit of poetry, but somehow English poetry never fascinated me much. I was somebody who grew up admiring the likes of Makhan Lal Chaturvedi and Subhadra Kumari Chauhan. The , Keats and Frosts of the world failed to evoke the same kind of enthusiasm in me.

Thanks to the recent interest in modern age poetry, English poetry has finally caught my fancy.

Nowadays, I often find myself admiring and enjoying English poetry. Recently, I had the chance to enjoy a beautiful poetry collection, Why I Scream in Verse.

Read on to know about my thoughts on Why I Scream in Verse! at the World.

What to expect?

Why I Scream in Verse: At the World is a collection of 50 poems which are segregated into 3 different categories – A Woman’s Journey, Social Clauses and And we Rise.

Most of the poems are short while a couple of them stretch over to two pages. If you are just getting into non-romantic poetry this might be a good book for you because the author’s simple yet powerful writing makes for an effortless read.

The theme

The first section mostly deals with women-centric issues like child marriage, body shaming, self-image issues, married life, child molestation, moral policing, domestic violence, divorce and social stigma among others. The woman-centric theme of this poetry collection makes this book a must read for every woman.

The second section deals with various social causes and issues. This section is yet another eye-opener as it talks about some of the most trivial yet often ignored topics. Some of the subjects of the poems included in this section are a garbage bin, a sweeper, a flute boy and a roadside vendor. If you are an emotional reader, you will be moved to shed a tear or two at some of the poems included in the section.

The third and last section is called And We Rise. After such thought-provoking topics in the previous two sections, the third one gives us a new ray of hope. The poems included in this part are multi-hued and can be best classified as diverse.

The illustrations

One thing which makes Why I Scream in Verse: At the World stand apart from other poetry books is the simple yet striking illustrations that accompany each poem.

That the illustrations also come from the author’s own brush is yet another strong point of this book; who better than the author to convey and complement her own words through the medium of art.

Overall, the illustrations are pretty basic. Even to a layman’s eye, they wouldn’t be a piece of art but that’s not the reason why they are included. In my opinion, they serve their purpose quite well.

My personal favorites

The poem that reduced me to tears and managed to render me speechless was “Garbage Bin”. It talks about how the garbage bin repents over the sins that it is sometimes made to commit against the young hopeless children who are left to die in its cradle. Even though it is a rather short poem, it doesn’t matter how many words one writes as long as one is able to convey a message as significant as this one.

Another poem that I absolutely loved was written in the voice of a young boy who talks about his sister. The poem is titled “For My Lovely Sister: Her Brother”. In a very innocent and naïve way, the boy tells us how her sister never really got to study as much as she liked, about how she would love to solve puzzles at the sink while washing dishes, and how she was given away at a very young age. All of it because she was a girl.

The final verdict

In simple words, I would recommend Why I Scream in Verse: At the World to all women readers.

The book poses some very essential questions and each and every poem is designed to make you ponder. There is meaning in every line and even between the lines.

What’s more? The book doesn’t make poetry sound elitist and reserved only for a select few. This book is for all and is written in a way that the messages it carries will be understood by all.

Pick up the book if

• You are a woman and you like poetry.
• You like poetry which makes a difference.
• You like poetry that talks about women and various issues.

Skip the book if

• You don’t like poetry.
• You are looking for only romantic poetry.
• Social causes and issues aren’t really your thing.

Can’t wait to read it? Buy your copy of Why I Scream in Verse using the link below.