By Kaylie Seed
Poetry is a genre that I enjoy reviewing because it poses a challenge. It is not an easy task to take the author's inner thoughts and feelings and review them, and poetry is subjective because everyone who reads it will have a different experience. Shannon Webb-Campbell’s Lunar Tides is a collection of poetry that discusses love and grief while structured to follow the phases of the moon. Webb-Campbell’s poetry also explores colonialism, kinship, and Indigenous resurgence through the eyes of a mixed Mi’kmaq-settler woman.
While the focus throughout this poetry collection is on defining what grief and grieving really is, the reader will also note that Webb-Campbell attempts to lay the groundwork for seeking healing. This is important because while the grieving process is something we all have a basic knowledge in, healing is something we don’t put enough effort into understanding. Webb-Campbell also encourages readers to notice their connection to both their mothers (or mother figures) here on Earth as well as Mother Earth and the connection that they pose to each other.
Lunar Tides is a poetry collection that I would recommend to readers looking to explore the meaning of grief and grieving or to those who want a better understanding of how the moon cycles influence us in our daily lives. The poems were not as deep as one may expect since the topics found throughout are heavy, but the prose is lovely to read and those wanting a quick book will likely appreciate these poems.
Thank you, BookHug Press, for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.