A Jarful of Moonlight, a poetry collection, by Nazanin Mirsadeghi, is simply described as "a collection of inspirational poems about love, hope, pain, grief, self-discovery and empowerment" (Goodreads). The poems, all untitled, are separated into sections that resonate the overlapping theme. The poems themselves are short and simple, easy to understand with concise imagery. This simultaneously gives a distinct impression while also leaving a little bit more to be desired. I tend to enjoy more metaphorical or feminist poetry because that's what intrigues me. Therefore, I felt a little disconnected from these poems, wanting a starker juxtaposition, a deeper truth to be revealed, or a more vibrant explanation. There were two poems that really struck me, one of which is as follows:
tell me
this walk
on the edge of a cliff
waiting for rock
to crumble
under my feet
is not love
The image that this poem depicts, in my opinion, is one of the strongest in the collection. Fear, hope, danger, resentment, disbelief... all of these feelings flash through me while reading these seven simple lines. Through this, and a few others, I know that Mirsadeghi has power as a poet. And I've no doubt that others who read this collection will connect with different pieces, some more and some less. The variety within the collection then makes me think that Mirsadeghi's poetry offers something for everyone. Though, as with poetry, I doubt that the same meaning will be drawn from them by different people. For those who enjoy reading poetry, I would definitely say to give this collection a shot. As I couldn't find any other poetry collections by the author, I assume that this is their first published work and can't help but feel that there are deeper meanings that this poet will reach with more work, even though this collection specifically didn't speak to me as much as others I have read.
Rating: 2.5/5 Cups
