by C. Handy
“Because I have been dealing with depression for a couple of decades, I wanted to read The Silent Roses by author C. Handy because it was listed as a poetry collection involving the topic of depression, inspired in part by his life. Inside I found a collection of 15 poems ranging from topics including but not limited to suicide, demons, rape, and rain. Averaging about 15 lines per poem, these small writings really pack a punch of emotion and evoke strong feelings. For example, take these lines in the piece titled “Senses” – “If I were to tell you that I couldn’t hear, would you screw with my head? Would you toy with my fear?” This poem shows vulnerability and insecurity at its base.
I really felt a connection to the poems contained in C. Handy’s The Silent Roses. The lines were very personally relatable because you could feel the truth of his having experienced these situations as well as his pain going through them, and his healing by speaking about them now. In the piece titled “Peace,” I cringed when I read the words about a young girl being told “You’re such a cry baby” and so, “she cuts herself daily.” So sad. The Silent Roses is a thought-provoking, emotion-stirring collection of poetry. C. Handy has written something that allows the reader to understand that they are someone worthy of love and able to achieve anything within their dreams” -Reviewed By Lori A. Moore for Readers’ Favorite