This is a beautifully crafted piece of fantasy, drawing the reader into what appears to be a first date between a magical creature and a lovely lady. But plans go awry with an intrusion.
The author plays out the interactions with a deft touch, movement and dialogue defining the characters. I love the fact that the author does not do an immediate information dump, but drops out the background a bit at a time, like cookie crumbs.
I only hope that LullabyElf writes more in this world, since I want to read more about what happened on First Earth and here.
Thank you, Michael K., for the nightmares this piece provides to anyone with imagination.
Seriously, I find this piece of fiction engaging on several levels. On one hand, "Pop Dolls" reflects on current society's obsession with fake beauty. I imagine Snookie wannabes wandering around the streets, speaking into fluorescent pink cell phones about the lately in the fashion world. False lips, fake breasts, and tanned in a tanning bed so much that it looks unnatural.
But this piece also speaks to the corruption of the soul, the result of replacing human parts with plastic. The lack of depth in our relationships, the almost phobia of appearing anything less that perfect, as both of them effect people.
The title, "Pop Dolls", even leaves the reader wondering about how we view our youth.
Ah, I like heart-warming poems about kids. I like the emotions here - I feel the bewildering mix of emotions that holding a young baby will bring about.
I did have one question for the author. How does the title, "Little Foot", relate to the rest of the poem? Don't get me wrong; I like the title as much as I like the poem. And I see a connection because babies have very small feet. But I expected a more obvious connection between the two.
One correction - possessive nouns need an apostrophe before the "s" (e.g. "sisters son" should be "sister's son")
I left this poem feeling warm and happy inside. And I wish your nephew well, PenMightierSword.
I enjoy reading poetry such as this one. Two stanzas filled with a simple message that should be obvious, a message that seems obvious once pointed out, but a message that is not obvious without being pointed out (kind of like Sherlock Holmes).
I read the two stanzas as having *almost* the same message. Stanza one states that a person needs to live in order to understand life lessons. I agree with this completely.
But stanza two states that a person can watch another person and learn life lessons.
In some ways, I think that it is possible for a person to learn lessons from watching other people in their successes and failures. But I also think that a certain maturity is needed to do this, so I am not sure that someone in their youth will be able to see this.
As for the technical aspects, the author, Liam, illustrates a strong vocabulary here, pulling out words to convey both the connotative and denotative meanings of each stanza. I love it when someone uses semi-colons appropriately!
Holy cow! This story rocks! In an economy where people everywhere are getting whatever job is available, the drudgery and horrid office described in the beginning hits home. The author, Kelsey, draws a fantastic picture of an utterly horrible place to work. I can smell the burnt coffee-copier ink aroma, and I had to work not to picture the puce carpet.
But it's the characters that I love the most. Renata, the main character and an ethical person stuck in a crappy job. Garrett, the boss who seems incompetent, crazy, or maybe a little bit of both. Josie, Renata's mother and a woman with a *personality*.
I found one single spelling mistake - the word "actually" is spelled "actaully" in the fourth paragraph. But I still give this piece five stars because the error does not detract from the work at all. And I find myself wanting to read more about Renata's life.
I love the story of Alice in Wonderland, including the recent movie. So I must admit from the beginning that I am biased to like any poetry on the subject.
Especially good poetry, such as "Wife of the Hatter". I can hear her voice in my head, this hatter's wife, as she speaks in a sing-song tone about her collapse into madness. The author deftly moves the wife, through her dialogue, from a sane person to an insane person, each stanza a step closer to madness. The sentence structure also lends an off-balanced air that fits in perfectly with the theme.
The one thing I wish were a bit more clear is how Alice contributed to the wife's downfall. Is the downfall the direct result of Alice's relationship with The Hatter? Or did Alice change something in the Hatter, or his wife? I am not certain if this question can be answered by an insane woman, but the lack of the answer leaves the reader wondering.
Otherwise, I love this piece of poetry, and I look forward to reading more by Victoria Mills.
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