I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

Get Well Soon: Poems is a quirky (bordering on absurd) collection of poems that I sadly couldn't gel with. I've not come across this author before and was very intrigued by the cover and blurb and decided to give it a go.
I'm very much a mood poetry reader and often relate more to poems that connect to me and enjoy a glimpse into another's thoughts, experiences, and emotions. This book, however, wasn't for me, sadly. If you have read this author and enjoyed his work I'm sure you will enjoy this book.

Intriguing words. But utter stream of consciousness. Baffling and contemplative.

Confused by my review? Me too, but it fits this collection.

Thank you NetGalley, ECW Press, and poet Jamie Sharpe for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This title has formatting issues which make the poems virtually unreadable and I don't feel as if I can truly judge them fairly, that said, what I did manage to read I don't think this would have particularly suited my style

This was my first experience with Sharpe's poetry, and it was a wild ride from beginning to end.

I'll start by saying that I received an ARC from NetGalley, and there seemed to be some pretty significant formatting issues on my Kindle that almost certainly diminished my enjoyment. The table of contents and the work itself ran together, and the spacing within the poems was inconsistent and, at times, jumbled. I did find myself wondering more than once if I would have enjoyed the poems(?) themselves more if they were presented as intended.

That said, the work itself is brusque, a little self-indulgent, and often witty-- but always a little absurd. Several of the pieces in "Get Well Soon" verged on so absurd, in fact, that they seemed to lose their depth. However, I found myself chuckling more than once at Sharpe's humor:

"In the aughts my nudes were leaked to the internet.
Which is to say I posted them. Often. I was very leaky."

"Afterword" appears to be a satirical analysis of (made up?) reviews and critiques of Sharpe's various works. It takes up around 65% of the total pages in "Get Well Soon." After figuring out what was going on, I found it a bit tedious and gradually pretty uncomfortable. It's not entirely that I didn't enjoy it-- it mostly left me wondering why I am uncomfortable with people praising themselves or envisioning a world in which they are lauded. I'm certainly going to sit with that question for a bit. I always value a piece that can elicit introspection, and this one certainly had that effect.

Ultimately, the style of Sharpe's writing in "Get Well Soon" didn't really jive with me, but I'm genuinely glad to have experienced it's utter weirdness. For fans of the absurd or folks who just want to read something new and odd, I think this short collection is worth checking out.

I didn't realize that the archive dates was so soon! I was hoping to read this one, as it seemed like it would be good. I will have to see if I can find it for a reasonable price somewhere, or just try and get the eBook once the title is released. I figured I would have more time since the release date isn't until April 2024. Darn.

Get Well Soon is Jamie Sharpe’s fifth collection and as a result probably not the best choice for anyone new to their work, like myself.

Being unfamiliar with Sharpe’s work meant I felt Get Well Soon lacked depth and cohesion. I suppose in many ways it read as a collection by a poet who knows they have readers and an audience, the poems could be exactly what Sharpe wanted without fear. I admire this and there is definitely wit and a keen awareness of the absurd mixed with reality, but most of the pieces seemed self-indulgent.

In short, this isn’t the collection for me.

This was a uniquely and strangely written collection full of poetry not only for your head but your soul. It was meant for someone and yet gives us all a piece of what the author has buried in their mind.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. This writing was not for me. I’m not sure what I did not connect to. Just the writing style in general did not do it for me.

Wow. This didn’t hit me the way I wanted but it was stunningly written.

Also that cover is amazing.

I always implore people to read poetry no matter what other people rate it as it may hit them or mean something to them differently. As it can always do something/mean different to each individual person.

3.25 stars! Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC to review!