July 09, 2004
Shadows of a heart is a very versatile book that
tackles sensitive issues and complex emotions in several ways. The poetry touches on
a large collective of emotions and will make you see things that you may take for granted from a different angle. The author talks about herself and the image that she projects to others where as there is so much more
to her – most of which is revealed in this book. The poems are of various
styles and most of them could also be sung (I can’t sing, so I didn’t try…) In her poetry I can see her
ability to write musical lyrics. Open her book to any page and think of the words musically
and you will appreciate this book even more.
Most of the poetry addresses difficult emotions that adults seem to think that they own.
However, today’s teenagers and children see far more and experience more stimuli than previous generations did. I was born during the Vietnam War era but the war raged, as I played at home, unaware of
any chaos. Today, children have seen the videos of 9-11 and are aware of the way
that humans hurt each other. They are not shielded from the reality of this planet
and Brittany Renée’s poetry speaks of these issues. Read the poems Richy Rich
and Peace On Earth and you will see that Brittany – and almost all teenagers – will not be denied the
truth. They watch and they see the pain and they are not too young to feel a part of
this pain as well.
She addresses the love that she has for her parents for being there for her when she needed
a shoulder to cry on or a dose of inspiration. She talks of abusive relationships
as well as healthy ones, love found and love lost, of Angels and Satan. All of
these very facets of human life are forever viewed by an ever-present God that we should seek to appease before our indiscretions
do us in. This is a well-rounded book of poetry and the message is so varied yet so
clear. I share Brittany Renée’s opinion that “ Even when you think no one
understands… there is always someone out there thinking the same thing. Words
sever relationships throughout life, but they also bond us for ever.
Thank you Brittany for sharing this part of your soul with us and I look forward to your
next poetry collection: Dusty Angel.
Reviewed by Tyrone Banks
