written by Julie L Thielen
illustrated by Kimberlee Traub
published by Lulu.com
ISBN:
978-0-557-05769-6
reviewed by Adam Armstrong
4.22.09
…like a woman scorned.
Deteriorate is a collection of poems and illustrations that
deal mainly with retribution and vengeance. It’s a rather short book at 93
pages and contains 37 poems and drawings.
The shorter the writing is the more difficult it
becomes. Poetry, by far, is the most difficult form of writing while novels are
the easiest. Thielen’s poetry comes off as a little
hit and miss. There was some great stuff, some good stuff, and some stuff that
the collection could have done without all mixed in there. I have a rule about
poetry: with the exception of Bukowski, never read a
bunch of poems from the same poet in a row, especially when all the poems are
similar.
The artwork was interesting. It had a Tim Burtonish feel to it. All the drawings are line art but that
simplicity lends strength to the poems that they precede.
Overall not a bad read. If you’re interested in
some dark poetry pick up a copy (it’s inexpensive) but pace yourself and read
it over the course of a month or so.
3.5 out of 5