Ned's (nordicnoir) Reviews

26

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#4651616

Review of Poetically Prompted

for entry "Invalid Entry"

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.0)

Hi, I am on a March Madness Review Raid. I am reviewing your poem which was entered in both "EXPRESS IT IN EIGHT " and "Promptly Poetry Challenge 7 (2026-2027)" . I think these poems are deserving of being read and reviewed more often and your poem definitely deserves to be read and appreciated.

I really liked the way you used the photo image to bring forth an important concept.
Man's evolution is no longer up to nature, he has taken it into his own hands but this is dangerous.

Your description of the robot conveys the cold, inhuman machinery that it is. Words like metallic and chrome make it sound like an accessory. Importantly, you remind us that without input,it's an empty shell. Man has the choice to activate it with programming or to even turn it or off. Your poem tells us that we should not follow this technology "don't give it anything" because "technology is danger".

And of course we have seen that humans often go too far when we think we are being clever. What if we invented these "slaves without masters"? Would we come to regret it? Would it be a disaster? I tend to think so, and am in agreement with the sentiment of your poem.

I know that the title refers to the double posting of the poem, but I would have liked to see a title that referenced the subject of the poem.

Great point made in just eight lines. Great job!

Keep Writing!

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27

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#4651276

Review of I Remember

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.5)

Hi, my name is Ned

and this review is based on my personal impressions and opinions. Feel free to take what you think is useful, and ignore the rest. This is just my way of letting the author know how this reader reacted to the item being reviewed.

TITLE: The title "I Remember" is perfect and is the repeated refrain.

FORM: The use of anaphora in this poem is well-executed. The repeated phrase of "I Remember" is hypnotic and puts the reader in a state of reverie as memories are recounted.

RHYTHM/RHYME: The repeated phrase of the anaphora makes for a steady rhythm that helps the reader feel gently lulled into childhood remembrances.

IMAGERY: All the senses are employed here, we see and smell and feel the wonderful images of childhood. These memories are personal to the poet, but every reader will be thinking back to the things that made them feel warm and happy in their childhood.

FAVORITE LINE(S): "I remember
the smell of Big Chief tobacco
mixed with the scents of diesel and dirt."
This is so specific and the reader can well imagine the scents involved.

SUGGESTIONS: none

OVERALL IMPRESSION: This is a lovely rendering of the memories of a child who experienced childhood in a close family and makes us all eel a bit homesick for our own individual childhood homes, families and special memories.

Keep On Writing!

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28

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#4650775

Review of An exciting trip to the moon

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.0)

This trip to the moon is both exciting and delightful. It's just the sort of fantasy adventure that children love to hear over and over.

Your characters are solid, being both curious and skeptical, adventurous and yet sometimes a bit cautious of the unknown. Just as children (and many adults) are.

Suggestions: In some places, I would love to see more detail. For instance, what kind of food is Moon food and what does Moon juice taste like?

The readability would be improved with some formatting changes. Using a larger font helps and the lines are not always broken up as one expects, which could be the result of copying and pasting the text from another source. Punctuation also should be punched up with more consistency in the use of quotation marks in dialogue.

Overall Impression: This is a delightful and creative tale that contains many fun and delicious adventures. How could anyone resist a chocolate ladder that you can eat as you climb?

I really enjoyed reading your father's story. What lucky children you were! I am glad you wrote it for us to read too. Thanks for sharing.

Keep Writing!

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29

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#4646161

Review of Promptly Poetry Challenge 2021-22

for entry "Illusions [Week 11 entry]"

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: 18+ | (5.0)

Aww... The ending is so sad. I did not see that coming.

I really liked the way you used the form to create a light-hearted tone, created a sense of fun, then surprised the reader with a twist at the end. The repeated line drives home the point so well. The repetition lulls us, then surprises us.

The title is perfect. Illusions are not just the tricks we see with our eyes, but also those we choose to see with our hearts.

Excellent use of the prompt words and the poetic form chosen.

I am making an effort to review more Promptly entries as these poems deserve readers. This entry truly does deserve more readers. It is a very well-constructed poem that makes a story out of three prompt words. You capture our imaginations and then our emotions. Nicely done.

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30

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#4627267

Review of shy

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.0)

I came upon your poem through read and review.

This is a short poem that packs a bigger punch than its size would lead one to expect. It details, in very relatable words, how a shy person deals with or tries not to deal with the "rules of the universe" or, perhaps for the shy person, the way society works. The first instinct is to try to behave, stay unnoticed in the background, follow the "rules".

In the last two lines, the poet and the poem breaks free of these restrictions - both the ones imposed by the "universe" and one suspects, the rules that the subject of the poem has imposed on him/herself.

The poet gets heard, with the emphasis on the word "SOUND" and makes the point that if one wallows in one's own problems or thoughts, the universe will simply go on and not wait.

This poem feels like one of personal victory and is also good advice based on experience. Introverts and those with social anxiety will certainly relate. The "universe" is how big normal society and interaction feels to someone with those attributes. Learning how to "explode" and be heard is a great victory for that person.

I enjoyed the message this poem conveys.

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Get CASH!" .

31

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#4620013

Review of The Ice Cream Truck by T. Erdelyi 2015

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.5)

I am reviewing in the

Superpower Summer Fun Review Raid

First Impressions I am reviewing poetry in our Summer Fun Raid and what is more summery than an ice cream truck? We all have memories of ice creams purchased from the ice cream truck, so much a part of childhood summers.

Tone The poem is written with a voice of enthusiasm and great nostalgia for something that was an important summer ritual - the arrival of the ice cream truck. The repeating of the ice cream chant (you scream, etc...) lets us hear the children's voices and keeps us right there with neighborhood friends, waiting for our frozen treats.

Form/Rhyme/Technical The poem is written in five line stanzas with an aabb rhyme scheme and each ending with the same fifth line which has an internal rhyme. There is no line spacing between the third and fourth stanzas. I think this is just a formatting mistake.

In Conclusion This is a fun and light-hearted rhyming poem that explores a common childhood experience and a traditional summer sight. I could relate to the scenes portrayed and felt those tugs of childhood memory as I read it, Good job.

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32

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#4619863

Review of Marshmallow Summer

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.5)

I am reviewing in the

Superpower Summer Fun Review Raid

First Impressions I was drawn to this poem by the title. I wondered in which way the summer was a "marshmallow summer" and wanted to read the poem to find out.

Tone The poem is written in a voice of wistfulness and nostalgia. The author is remembering times from childhood, reminiscing about summers spent with the author's grandfather. There's a real feel of lazy summer days spent fishing and cozy summer nights spent round the campfire. There's texture introduced with "the muddy Chikaskia river". The marshmallow summer ends each day with roasting marshmallows over the fire while listening to grandpa tell tall tales.

Form/Rhyme/TechnicalThe poem is written as free verse though there is the occasional casual rhyme (trees, breeze) which fit the poem well.

In Conclusion This is an evocative poem that pays homage to "grandpa" and celebrates the memories of summers spent with him. It is clear that the author cherishes those memories and misses those simple marshmallow summer days. The poem will remind readers of their own cherished summer memories and certainly gets the reader in the "feels".

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Get CASH!" .

33

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#4619854

Review of Cooking Lessons

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.5)

I am reviewing in the

Superpower Summer Fun Review Raid

First Impressions I was drawn by the fun subject of the poem - Learning to cook from the mysterious Tess. We don't find out who Tess is, but that doesn't detract from the poem greatly.

Tone The tone of the poem is light and cheerful. The scene in the kitchen is well described to the reader, right down to the "dough boy" and the rolls (a reference that nearly everyone will understand. I loved the reference to The Galloping Gourmet. I am sure that will bring back memories for quite a few readers.

Form/Rhyme/Technical The rhyme and rhythm of the poem is bouncy It encourages the reader along as the culinary adventure continues.

In Conclusion This is an amusing poem about cooking lessons and the secret ingredient that makes all food taste better. The bouncy rhythm added to the light-hearted tone. It was a fun read, but I did wonder about poor Tess being delegated to the kitchenette forever.

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34

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#4590705

Review of WINTER REST

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.5)

I am reviewing in the
WINTER FUN
"The Power Reviewers Group"
Review Raid

First Impressions For a very short poem, these four lines are full of vivid imagery. The word choices are excellent and convey the atmosphere of the scene.

Form/Rhyme/Technical The poem is one quartet with a rhyme scheme of aabb. The near rhyme of hung and drum works well. I wanted to insert another syllable in the third line, as in "the branches..." etc. The comma in the first line is useful and made me miss the inclusion of commas in other lines where I felt a natural pause when reading.

In Conclusion I like the imagery of this poem and the rhythm and rhyme could easily make it a poem one might memorize. It creates for the reader sights, sounds and sensations, making it a full experience. I enjoyed reading this poem.

Any suggestions made are merely my opinion and do not reflect on my enjoyment in the work as a whole.

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35

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#4580251

Review of Little by little

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (5.0)

I am reviewing your poem "Little by little" . Please keep in mind that ALL of the views expressed are purely my own, any suggestions are meant to be helpful, but you are entitled to reject any and all of my opinions. I hope you find something helpful or encouraging.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: The opening lines really grabbed my attention and kept me reading. I loved the imagery of whittling away defenses likened to whittling on a stick, because it's not for attack purposes, it is to create something more beautiful in many cases.

VOICE/TONE: This is a poem of tender expressions about falling in love and building a relationship. It is written with emotion and gratitude. I am sure that the feelings expressed in this poem would resonate with a lot of readers.

FORM: The poem is free verse which is a great choice. Too much emotion in too many rhymes often makes light of the emotions and this poem struck just the right notes for me.

FINAL THOUGHTS This is a sweet, heartfelt little poem that says a lot about relationships and how "little by little" can build a lasting relationship. The last two lines wrap it up succinctly but with great feeling:

"There is no doubt that little by little we found each other
soulmates forever bound"

I thought it was lovely.

KEEP ON WRITING!

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36

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#4580183

Review of Springtime

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.5)

I ran across your poem in Read & Review. I wanted to jot down a few lines to tell you what I liked about it.

I read the poem before looking at the title or the explanation and I didn't realize it was an acrostic at first. That says a lot about the quality of the writing.

Normally, I am not the biggest fan of acrostic poems because often the effort is put into finding words to fulfill the requirements of the word(s) in question and the poetry of the thing ends up being secondary. That is not the case here.

The imagery of spring is vivid in the poem's appreciation of spring and the reader is filled with similar appreciation.

Favorite line: "Imaginings of love bloom with the flowers"

This is a sweet and sentimental poem full of the loveliness of springtime. I enjoyed the transition from snow to spring as I read along.

Keep Writing!

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37

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#4580056

Review of The Ode Master Writes

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: 18+ | (5.0)

I am reviewing your poem "The Ode Master Writes" . Please keep in mind that ALL of the views expressed are purely my own, any suggestions are meant to be helpful, but you are entitled to reject any and all of my opinions. I hope you find something helpful or encouraging.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS:There's an atmosphere created here from the first line of this poem to the last syllable. It draws the reader into the world of the Ode Master.

VOICE/TONE:The poet helps us observe and feel, there is a sense of age, the Ode Master has trembling handwriting. There is a sense of loss and grief, the voices of those who have died are sounding in the Ode Master's head, as he writes odes to those who have passed under the scythe of the grim reaper.

FORM:The poem is written in free verse and the author uses it to great advantage in painting a vivid scene with such wonderful lines as
"As smoke blows across a paper moon
leaving charcoal smudges
on the walls".
Definitely my favorite line.

FINAL THOUGHTS I enjoyed reading this poem. It created a well-drawn character and world, bringing it to life with vivid imagery. Very well done.

KEEP ON WRITING!

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38

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#4579175

Review of Good-bye Despair

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: 13+ | (4.5)

I am reviewing in the "The Power Reviewers Group" " Ghostly Hallows Raid."

This is an emotional piece that is something between a farewell note and an exculpatory essay. This relationship deteriorates not only because one person is always being grim and unhappy, but also because the other party in the relationship needs to save his/her own sanity and avoid the traps of depression.

This poem highlights the difficulties of being with someone who suffers from irrational fears and lack of hope:

"Love cannot live without light,
It cannot survive depression's blight."

The title's good-bye is not just to the relationship, but to the feelings that person brought to the relationship which are unhealthy for both of them.

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Get CASH!" .

39

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#4579067

Review of The Vampire Blues

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (5.0)

I am reviewing in the "The Power Reviewers Group" " Ghostly Hallows Raid."

I must admit that I really love flash fiction. It's such a challenge to fit a whole story, characters, conflict and resolution all in a limited number of words. This flash fiction pretty much does all that in a tidy little story of paranormal romance.

A lot of people will identify with both the vampire and his librarian in that sometimes the modern world goes too fast and lacks charm. There's plenty of charm in this tale of a budding romance.

I started to write that I wanted more of a twist at the end, seeing the final declaration of "I don't have forever" as being poignant and sad since their romance is doomed to end and then I slapped myself upside the head as I realized THAT is the twist. Our hero is a vampire... oh dear, I nearly missed that brilliant ending.

Now I have more of a smile on my face than I did when I started writing this review. Great story!

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Get CASH!" .

40

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#4578955

Review of Autumn Ebbing

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.5)

I am reviewing in the "The Power Reviewers Group" " Ghostly Hallows Raid."

First Impressions: From the first line, this poem creates an atmosphere and feeling of Autumn. I love the "crispy morning nose" that immediately tells us what time of year it is. There are so many delicious descriptions of the season using unusual and fresh adjectives, painting lovely pictures with words, involving all the senses and immersing the reader in the changes occurring in nature. I won't mention them all, but I like the leaves "complaining" when trod upon and the grates of flame logging the nights of Autumn. Very clever.

Favorite Part: The entire second stanza.
It's excellent in every way, but especially commendable for describing the Autumn sky without using a list of colors, but instead firing the imagination of the reader.

Voice/Tone The voice is one of observation and appreciation of the subject.

I really enjoyed this poem and not just because it is about my favorite season. It tackles a subject that has been written about non-stop for the last two months on this site, and yet manages a fresh angle and tone.

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Get CASH!" .

41

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#4578894

Review of The Black Cat's Tale

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (5.0)

I am reviewing in the "The Power Reviewers Group" " Ghostly Hallows Raid."

TITLE: The story doesn't feel like it's the cat's tale as it's not really about the cat, nor does the cat narrate. It does keep the reader focused on the cat, however, which sets up the twist at the end rather nicely.

PLOT: The plot is well-constructed with good pacing and keeps the reader eager to find out what happens next, never giving away too much and sustaining the suspense throughout.

FAVORITE PART or LINE:"...the words were musty with age, resurrected from some ancient, forgotten tongue."

READABILITY-GRAMMAR-PUNCTUATION:If there were any problems, I was obviously too engrossed in the story to notice.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:Despite my personal doubts that Myrddin will get very far in his quest for Mankind's Better Nature, I found the story just eerie enough to captivate. I love a story with a twist at the end, so the revelation of his true identity and his true relationship to the cat was a satisfying surprise ending. A very enjoyable read.

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Get CASH!" .

42

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#4575781

Review of Breakfast.

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: 13+ | (4.5)

I am reviewing your item "Breakfast." . Please keep in mind that ALL of the views expressed are purely my own, any suggestions are meant to be helpful, but you are entitled to reject any and all of my opinions. I hope you find something helpful or encouraging.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: At first, I wondered about where this story was leading us, as the conflict in the plot wasn't immediately apparent. But as the story unfolded, it all became clear. Presentation wise, the grammar is correct, there are no typos and the font and spacing make this easy to read for which I, as a reader, am grateful.

PLOT: Shweta is a student and her mother is head of the Biology Department. Her mother has a presentation and is nervous so they are leaving for school early. Shweta is more concerned with her empty stomach and missing breakfast than she is her mother's success with her presentation, even though an important person, the Head of the Board, is going to be there.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: Shweta is completely believable as a school student who has to deal with all the usual difficulties of being school age as well as having her mother there at the school. We don't get to know the mother as well, but we do see her struggling with her various responsibilites and stresses in life.

FINAL THOUGHTS The predicament that the mother finds herself in, namely having prepared a lesson on the importance of eating breakfast yet having neglected to give her own child any at all, is amusing and true to life. Perhaps the buildup to the embarrassing part for them both could have been more dramatic. Overall, this was a well-constructed, pleasant read.

KEEP ON WRITING!

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43

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#4575247

Review of Reluctant Santa

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: 13+ | (4.5)

Hi, my name is Ned

and these are just my thoughts after reading your story {item:}. These are my personal opinions and I am not a professional editor so feel free to use or discard any suggestions. These are just my impressions of what I am reviewing.

TITLE: The title is certainly appropriate and describes the main point of the story - Brad is definitely a reluctant Santa.

PLOT: The plot follows a familiar theme but introduces new problems and conflicts to keep it interesting.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: Brad undergoes a change of heart after e becomes Santa but returns to being reluctant once the night's trip is over. We can imagine Brad fairly well from his actions and reactions in the story. We are not told much about Santa, but everyone knows pretty much all they need to know about Santa before they start reading the story, so unless the story was going to recreate Santa in a nonn-traditional way, not a lot of character development is needed.

FAVORITE PART or LINE: "Come Dancer, come Prancer, come stupid and wicked ..." This line really tells us how Brad feels about taking over for Santa.

READABILITY-GRAMMAR-PUNCTUATION: There are a couple of typos with missing letters or the failure to capitalize "I" as in "i'll" but nothing serious or that interferes with reading or understanding. My reviews are often riddled with typos so I will expect the same courtesy of overlooking them, thanks.

SUGGESTIONS: My only suggestion would be to expand on it a little but there's the possibility it was written to a word count. So I will only say that if you wanted to expand it, there's a good story here as the foundation for a longer piece.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS: I liked the twist that Santa is brought back to Brad's house and the use of the old pick up truck instead of the sleigh. When the truck disintegrates and Brad gets his teeth knocked out, it leads to a very amusing line for Brad and a laugh at the end of the story. An amusing, light-hearted holiday tale that made for an enjoyable read.

Keep On Writing!

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44

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#4574682

Review of Doll Heads Fly At Night

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.0)

I came across your story while reading and reviewing so I thought I would take a moment to share a few thoughts on it.

First let me welcome you to WDC. I hope you will enjoy being here.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Your story is about a little girl who gets some dolls as a present but the dolls do something scary and no one believes her. It reminded me of a story about dolls that my daughter and her friend read at a sleepover when she was a little girl and they were very scared by it. For that reason, your story appealed to me.

PLOT: The plot revolves around Brooke's efforts to get others to believe her story about the dolls' heads flying around. Everyone thinks she is either telling lies or that she is crazy. Finally, Brooke arranges for another person to see the dolls lose their heads.

SUGGESTIONS: I would have liked to find out more about the dolls and find out the reason that their heads came off and flew around. I think the story would be great with a strong ending.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS I felt like this was a great start to a story, but it felt like only part of a story. It could be improved with a backstory on the dolls - are they possessed? cursed? Why did the grandmother have them?

Thanks for writing this enjoyable read. I hope to see more from you and maybe even a sequel on the dolls.

KEEP ON WRITING!

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45

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#4573414

Review of poems

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.0)

I came across your poems while I was browsing Read & Review. I wanted to write a few lines to tell you my impressions.

I see you are new to WDC, so let me encourage you to spend some time reading the Writing.com 101 which you can find in the left hand column of your screen under Writing.com Tools. It contains a lot of good info to get you started.

I see you have posted several poems here in one item. I would highly recommend that you post each as a separate item so that they can be reviewed separately. But let me address a couple of the longer poems.

Your poem entitled Love Eternal is quite beautiful in describing a deep devotion and does a good job of conveying the depth of emotion and desire to protect the object of the poet's love. It contains a few spelling errors (or typos, not sure). Fixing these will greatly improve readability.

The poems Rose Thorns and Dagger are similar - they express powerful concepts in vivid imagery but suffer from spelling errors which will make it difficult for the reader to appreciate the poem as they should.

I think your poetry contains strong imagery and could be made more powerful with some editing. This reader felt the emotional impact of the poems. Keep writing and share more of your work. It is best to post each poem individually for the best chance of being read and reviewed.

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#4572459

Review of Bevelled

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.5)

Hi, I came across this through Read & Review and thought I would write a few lines as a review and to tell you my impressions.

First, I am not sure if the first line is part of the story, or an actual question to the reader or reviewer? If the former, I am not sure how it relates to the story. If the latter, then I will attempt to respond.

The writing is good and the atmosphere is set so well by the descriptions of the scene and the inner narrative of the main character. It is tense and dark.

There's a feeling of being dropped into the middle of a suspenseful story, arriving at a moment when everything that has been building up the tension has suddenly boiled over into this situation, but we don't know why. The detachment the shooter feels towards the victim is compared to the experience of the spider in the bathtub, and we wonder if this is a paid hit job. Certainly, the idea of calling someone on the phone from a shop and asking mundane questions like someone establishing an alibi appears deliberate.

I found the entire piece intriguing and it made me want to know more, to find out the "before and after". I felt like this might be a part of a longer story. If it isn't, it could certainly be expanded into one.

Keep Writing!

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#4572143

Review of What Lives On The Wind?

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (5.0)

Hi, my name is Ned

and this review is based on my personal impressions and opinions. Feel free to take what you think is useful, and ignore the rest. This is just my way of letting the author know how this reader reacted to the item being reviewed.
.

TITLE: I like the title as it relates to the last verse of the poem. The poem takes us into the wind and explores its sound.

FORM: The poem is a Tri-Jan, a form of poetry I was not familiar with. The author includes a comprehensive explanation of the form and its rhyme scheme.

RHYTHM/RHYME: The rhymes in this poem flow melodically and help create the sound that the poem is trying to convey. They are subtle and go from being quiet and landing softly on the ear to surrounding the reader with the sounds of the wind.

IMAGERY: The imagery is vivid and evocative.

FAVORITE LINE(S):"Quietly it fell, nonetheless, Ominous, without sound." This is a perfect description of a silent but steady snowfall. It makes no noise, demands no attention, but is very dangerous.

SUGGESTIONS: None

OVERALL IMPRESSION: At first, I questioned the placement of the explanation of the form, its syllable count, line count and rhyme scheme at the top of the page. But honestly, there are so many rules and counts that this lovely and evocative poem became much more than that.

It became an expert use of language and imagery that it can both accomplish this complicated structure and create a storm that the reader finds himself experiencing on every line.

I think this poetic form was executed brilliantly.

Keep On Writing!

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#4571917

Review of Rugged

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (5.0)

I don't expect to run into a limerick that leaves me in awe of the skill it employs, but then I read this limerick.

I don't know who told you that "tugged" is two syllables (news to me) but even if they were totally crazy, they did you a favor because it resulted in this extremely clever limerick. I did read it both ways and it made smile both times.

What can I say? One brilliant idea, no matter what inspired it.

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#4571830

Review of Bittersweet Rosebuds

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (5.0)

Hi. I ran across your poem in the Read & Review and wanted to write a few lines to tell you my impressions of it.

The poem is one that tells the story of how one relationship broke up. The fault is on the narrator of the poem, who forgot a birthday. The poem tells us that this is not the first time and yet he expected her to be waiting as she always did.

The understanding of the tears that his neglect caused makes the reader feel the grief on both sides of this break-up. But the realization hits him too late and he has hurt her too much.

Overall Impressions: This is a free verse poem that tells a poignant story and doesn't try to excuse the behavior of the partner who forgot the birthday, and is honest about the way people sometimes take each other for granted. A lesson for all to treasure their relationships or risk losing them. I felt this was well done and enjoyed reading this poem.

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Only reviews from the past
14 days may be credited.

#4571775

Review of Summertime Is Precious

Review by Ned

In affiliation with The Power Reviewers Group

Rated: E | (4.5)

Hi, my name is Ned

and this review is based on my personal impressions and opinions. Feel free to take what you think is useful, and ignore the rest. This is just my way of letting the author know how this reader reacted to the item being reviewed.

TITLE: The title expresses the poet's feelings about summer, sums up the poem's meaning and is appropriate for the poem.

FORM: This is a structured poem that is written in rhyming quatrains with an a/b/c/b rhyme scheme.

RHYTHM/RHYME: The rhymes flow well and add to the lyrical quality of the poem.

IMAGERY: The imagery is vivid. The reader gets the sense that the poet really revels in these summer scenes that are described here with such detail and enthusiasm.

FAVORITE LINE(S): The entire fourth stanza is lovely. I can envision the graceful movements of the weeping willows from the description here.

SUGGESTIONS: The use of the word "doth" in the first stanza seems out of place. "Doth" is the third person singular of the verb "to do", so it is mismatched with a first person subject which should be "I in awe do spy". Besides, the poem has such a nice, melodic flow that it doesn't need the addition of old-fashioned verbs IMHO.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: This poem is a celebration of nature and is an appealing mixture of vivid images and a feeling of joy at the sight of them. I enjoyed this poem very much.

Keep On Writing!

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