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Sorting Myself: a collection of poetry
A young girl exploring her place in the world attempts to slip into the identity of a saint. A woman bruised by rape culture rewrites her identity. A devoted skeptic experiences real conviction. These scenarios and more are the focus of Sorting Myself: a testament to the human experience.
- GenresPoetry
70 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2014
234 people want to read
About the author
Sarahbeth Caplin
9 books91 followersReading interests: YA, novels with unreliable narrators, biographies, memoirs, history, and all things theology-related.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 19, 2014
I am not acquainted with the author and downloaded her book from Amazon.com.
Sorting Myself is an excellent book of short poems. Sarahbeth Caplin looks candidly at questions that all of us ask which are often timeless in their no answer.
Her verse is mostly free form, but you glide along it effortlessly. You may not have walked in her many shoes, but you will be able to relate.
Her poetry left me with a plethora of quotes for my larder. From Writer's Block: "An injection of ink might help me think of some way to be heard."
In Authenticity she comments, "The best words are served whole for wise words are not to be minced." And mincing words is something you won't see from Ms. Caplin.
The color of shame is cherry-tree is an insightful look at the double-standard frustration of being a woman in the modern era.
I admire her shrewd use of structure, italicized parentheses in several poems that momentarily took you out of the current but kept you in the stream. One instance occurs in the short titled JM, which ends with a blank page that SHOUTS volumes.
I have several more favorites, too many to list. This is definitely a book that will stay on my Kindle for frequent inspiration.
(My personal guide for ratings are as follows: 5 stars, equal to any book of its genre, better than most; 4 stars, content that easily moves past a few formatting errors that do little or nothing to impact it, still highly recommended; 3 stars, technical errors or format choices impaired the flow of the book although I did enjoy the content. 2 stars, I struggled with the book due to either technical errors and/or a concept that was trite or underwritten. 1 star signifies a book that I abandoned before finishing due to structural errors in either plot or mechanics.)
Sorting Myself is an excellent book of short poems. Sarahbeth Caplin looks candidly at questions that all of us ask which are often timeless in their no answer.
Her verse is mostly free form, but you glide along it effortlessly. You may not have walked in her many shoes, but you will be able to relate.
Her poetry left me with a plethora of quotes for my larder. From Writer's Block: "An injection of ink might help me think of some way to be heard."
In Authenticity she comments, "The best words are served whole for wise words are not to be minced." And mincing words is something you won't see from Ms. Caplin.
The color of shame is cherry-tree is an insightful look at the double-standard frustration of being a woman in the modern era.
I admire her shrewd use of structure, italicized parentheses in several poems that momentarily took you out of the current but kept you in the stream. One instance occurs in the short titled JM, which ends with a blank page that SHOUTS volumes.
I have several more favorites, too many to list. This is definitely a book that will stay on my Kindle for frequent inspiration.
(My personal guide for ratings are as follows: 5 stars, equal to any book of its genre, better than most; 4 stars, content that easily moves past a few formatting errors that do little or nothing to impact it, still highly recommended; 3 stars, technical errors or format choices impaired the flow of the book although I did enjoy the content. 2 stars, I struggled with the book due to either technical errors and/or a concept that was trite or underwritten. 1 star signifies a book that I abandoned before finishing due to structural errors in either plot or mechanics.)
March 13, 2014
i have no words for this at all except for I LOVE IT.
4.5 stars for this one.
more people should read this.
4.5 stars for this one.
more people should read this.
March 27, 2014
I like poetry.
Let me rephrase that. I really love certain types of poetry. You know, the kind you might not understand on first reading, but it slams you in the gut with feeling. Understandingly, this is the kind of poetry I write. This collection is NOT that kind, and at first I continued reading only out of obligation (I had agreed to give an honest review). That being said, these pieces have a certain additive property. As I turned the pages, a rumbling began inside me that grew with each page.
These are simple pieces, some only a handful of lines long, not the complex surreal writings I usually read, but they started a resonance inside me, a story of a girl trying to find her place in the world and ultimately succeeding in defining that space. It may or may not have been the place she was searching for, but there definitely was a subtle power there.
Don't base you opinion on this collection on 1 or 2 pages. Read the whole book and let it percolate. I think you'll find that you enjoy the flavor.
Let me rephrase that. I really love certain types of poetry. You know, the kind you might not understand on first reading, but it slams you in the gut with feeling. Understandingly, this is the kind of poetry I write. This collection is NOT that kind, and at first I continued reading only out of obligation (I had agreed to give an honest review). That being said, these pieces have a certain additive property. As I turned the pages, a rumbling began inside me that grew with each page.
These are simple pieces, some only a handful of lines long, not the complex surreal writings I usually read, but they started a resonance inside me, a story of a girl trying to find her place in the world and ultimately succeeding in defining that space. It may or may not have been the place she was searching for, but there definitely was a subtle power there.
Don't base you opinion on this collection on 1 or 2 pages. Read the whole book and let it percolate. I think you'll find that you enjoy the flavor.
June 25, 2014
This collection of poetry of roughly about 50 poems, most short enough to only be a handful of lines is a journey of self introspection. While this is not the poetry that I write as an author, I appreciate them nonetheless.
If you're looking for rhyming poetry, this is not the collection for you. This is free verse poetry, with rare rhymes sprinkled here and there. Like in Warrior's Creed: "Glorious kings forfeiting crowns, glowing brides in tattered gowns"
These poems are filled with thought, self-reflection, and even retrospect. I enjoyed the imagery. It wasn't the punch you in the face imagery, it was subtle and would linger after you've read the words.
In the poem On Writer's Block we are allowed inside the author's mind and how she feels when she cannot write, summarized eloquently, "A hollow ache fills up my brain, when there are no words inside." To something I can personally relate to.
I did find my favorites in the poems, Insatiable, and Hindsight.
If you're looking for rhyming poetry, this is not the collection for you. This is free verse poetry, with rare rhymes sprinkled here and there. Like in Warrior's Creed: "Glorious kings forfeiting crowns, glowing brides in tattered gowns"
These poems are filled with thought, self-reflection, and even retrospect. I enjoyed the imagery. It wasn't the punch you in the face imagery, it was subtle and would linger after you've read the words.
In the poem On Writer's Block we are allowed inside the author's mind and how she feels when she cannot write, summarized eloquently, "A hollow ache fills up my brain, when there are no words inside." To something I can personally relate to.
I did find my favorites in the poems, Insatiable, and Hindsight.
May 19, 2014
First of all I would like to start by saying that I am a fan of poetry my self, as I do write it aswell.
I felt that this collection was very different to my own writing. However, from the first piece of poetry, to the last, I felt the imagery captivated me very well. The writer has shown dedication to poetry, by writing in a way that is perfect in many ways. Even though I do write my own poetry, I felt this is one of those pieces of works that can grasp anyone's attention. Caplin has intertwined a range of emotions and themes, that relate very well to anyone who is treading the path of self discovery- which is basically everyone. A few of my favourites were, On Writer's Block, Sorting Myself, Army of One, and Hindsight. The descriptive imagery and flowing rhythm of Caplin's work is enough to reel you in and keep you begging for more. This is what real poetry is !
I felt that this collection was very different to my own writing. However, from the first piece of poetry, to the last, I felt the imagery captivated me very well. The writer has shown dedication to poetry, by writing in a way that is perfect in many ways. Even though I do write my own poetry, I felt this is one of those pieces of works that can grasp anyone's attention. Caplin has intertwined a range of emotions and themes, that relate very well to anyone who is treading the path of self discovery- which is basically everyone. A few of my favourites were, On Writer's Block, Sorting Myself, Army of One, and Hindsight. The descriptive imagery and flowing rhythm of Caplin's work is enough to reel you in and keep you begging for more. This is what real poetry is !
September 3, 2014
Poetry for review is very new for me , normally I read poetry in passing or with my kids. I know growing up before school poetry was always sing songy and rhymed. You go off to school and start to learn there are so many kinds of poetry to read and write. I quickly learned my favorites did not rhyme.
I enjoyed exploring this book. I found myself questioning many things and looking for the inner meanings to the poems. As an adult I find poetry is a way to organize the different thoughts , views and struggles going on in our heads. Some of these made sense to me , others left me wondering and some I just could not figure out. Having said that I found myself reading a few over and over again and thinking of others hours after I read them. It was great to be in the author's head and see another creative side to her.
Thank you for sharing your work !
I enjoyed exploring this book. I found myself questioning many things and looking for the inner meanings to the poems. As an adult I find poetry is a way to organize the different thoughts , views and struggles going on in our heads. Some of these made sense to me , others left me wondering and some I just could not figure out. Having said that I found myself reading a few over and over again and thinking of others hours after I read them. It was great to be in the author's head and see another creative side to her.
Thank you for sharing your work !
August 11, 2014
Wrestling through Poetry
As with all poetry collections, some of the poems in Caplin's 'Sorting Myself' resonated with me while others did not. (Really just a matter of personal preference, I think). The poem that hit home most for me was titled 'Surrogate Jesus', but I enjoyed a number of others. I found that Caplin wrestles in her poetry, and makes the reader wrestle as well. Will definitely interest readers of a more philosophical nature.
As with all poetry collections, some of the poems in Caplin's 'Sorting Myself' resonated with me while others did not. (Really just a matter of personal preference, I think). The poem that hit home most for me was titled 'Surrogate Jesus', but I enjoyed a number of others. I found that Caplin wrestles in her poetry, and makes the reader wrestle as well. Will definitely interest readers of a more philosophical nature.
August 26, 2014
I need to read this collection of poetry again before I really provide a review. The poems are not light and fluffy, they require introspection that I can't really give them while my children are running around the house screaming like maniacs. There were a couple that did stand out, that I really enjoyed upon first reading, Pandoro and Flavor of the Month.
August 10, 2014
This book is a great read!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews