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Invisible Strings: 113 Poets Respond to the Songs of Taylor Swift
An anthology of brand-new poems inspired by Taylor Swift songs, from a powerhouse group of contemporary poets, including Kate Baer, Maggie Smith, and Joy Harjo.
Let the decoding begin!
With a record-breaking four Grammy awards for Album of the Year, Taylor Swift stands alone in the world of pop music. One of the most talented lyricists of all time, her music captivates millions of fans throughout the globe with the narrative depth and emotional resonance of her songwriting.
In Invisible Strings, poet, professor, and dedicated Swiftie Kristie Frederick-Daugherty has brought together 113 contemporary poets, each contributing an original poem that responds to a specific Taylor Swift song.
In a spirit of celebration and collaboration, poets have taken a cue from Swift’s love of dropping clues and puzzles for her fandom to decode, as each poem alludes to a song without using direct lyrics.
The collection showcases a diverse and accomplished array of writers including the 23rd US Poet Laureate Joy Harjo, Pulitzer Prize winners Diane Seuss, Yusef Komunyakaa, Carl Phillips, Rae Armantrout, and Gregory Pardlo, National Book Critics Circle Award winners Mary Jo Bang and Laura Kasischke, and bestselling poets Maggie Smith, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Kate Baer, Amanda Lovelace, Tyler Knott Gregson, and Jane Hirshfield.
Swifties will experience the profundity and nuance of Swift’s lyrics through these poems, while having fun matching the poems to songs from all of her eras—vault tracks included! For poetry lovers, this one-of-a-kind anthology is an unparalleled collection of new work from today’s most lauded and revered poets.
Let the decoding begin!
With a record-breaking four Grammy awards for Album of the Year, Taylor Swift stands alone in the world of pop music. One of the most talented lyricists of all time, her music captivates millions of fans throughout the globe with the narrative depth and emotional resonance of her songwriting.
In Invisible Strings, poet, professor, and dedicated Swiftie Kristie Frederick-Daugherty has brought together 113 contemporary poets, each contributing an original poem that responds to a specific Taylor Swift song.
In a spirit of celebration and collaboration, poets have taken a cue from Swift’s love of dropping clues and puzzles for her fandom to decode, as each poem alludes to a song without using direct lyrics.
The collection showcases a diverse and accomplished array of writers including the 23rd US Poet Laureate Joy Harjo, Pulitzer Prize winners Diane Seuss, Yusef Komunyakaa, Carl Phillips, Rae Armantrout, and Gregory Pardlo, National Book Critics Circle Award winners Mary Jo Bang and Laura Kasischke, and bestselling poets Maggie Smith, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Kate Baer, Amanda Lovelace, Tyler Knott Gregson, and Jane Hirshfield.
Swifties will experience the profundity and nuance of Swift’s lyrics through these poems, while having fun matching the poems to songs from all of her eras—vault tracks included! For poetry lovers, this one-of-a-kind anthology is an unparalleled collection of new work from today’s most lauded and revered poets.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published December 3, 2024
305 people are currently reading
8530 people want to read
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June 24, 2025
I love poetry. To the extent that I would even say while totally sober that it is my favorite art form. But I am also admittedly a Swiftie so imagine my delight when I discovered Invisible Strings: 113 Poets Respond to the Songs of Taylor Swift, a brilliant anthology edited by Kristie Frederick Daugherty that makes for a pleasant poetic tribute to the pop star. Drawing together a wide variety of poets—and not just any poets but some absolute bangers of the poetry world such as Andrea Gibson, Jane Hirshfield, Naomi Shihab Nye, Ellen Bass Maggie Smith, Diane Seuss, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Carl Phillips, Laura Kasischke, Victoria Chang, former US Poet Laureate Joy Harjo, and many more—Invisible Strings is a twist on ekphrastic poetry capturing the spirit of song instead of a painting in poetic verse that brings the Swift eras to new life. ‘What strange magic to have Taylor Swift sing such holy truth to me, and to try to sing it back,’ writes Jeannine Ouellette in her brief essay with each poet getting space to discuss their thoughts on both their own and Taylor Swift’s art and the collaboration of voices here sings such a thundering and joyful chorus with Swift’s music. So, poetry lovers and Swifties rejoice: Invisible Strings is an amazing anthology you’ll want to turn to again and again.
And now from the distance of time
—Jane Hirshfield
And now from the distance of time
when stories are over
one in a frame on a dresser
one left to remember
you left with nowhere to leave to
a world where nothing can vanish can vanish
from inside the trees or above them
the moon blameless as I was as you were
call it weather
call it something that lives outside measure
a lifetime apart a lifetime together
are neither forever nor never
a lifetime together a lifetime apart
one person turns into another
forgive past forgive future departure
a story continues beyond its erasure
we were two oars dividing one water
and time cannot sever
As she watched Swift announce an upcoming album to be titled The Tortured Poets Department at the Grammy’s editor Kristie Frederick Daugherty found herself wondering ‘how can poets and poetry enter into conversation with Swift?’ The result became Invisible Strings. Daugherty first approached Pulitzer Prize winning poet Diane Seuss to discuss the project and Diane eagerly agreed, offering Daugherty a list of other poets to contact. Each poet involved was given their own Swift song and asked to respond to it with their own poem and then write a little bit about the process or what they felt from engaging with Swift’s music. The results are outstanding with each poet taking a unique perspective (and occasionally collaborating with other poets) that playfully engages with the imagery, rhythms, heartaches, and overall enthusiastically catchy vibes of the musician's work. Each poem feels unique and in the voice of its poet, yet also retains a quality of Swift as if the two were harmonizing together both lyrically and spiritually.
It All Comes Back to Me Now
—Maya C. Popa
Dusk, the mountains mauve,
and the samphire trembles between stones,
and the voices of long-dead singers
croon through a hotel stereo.
Theirs is a wisdom suspended in feeling:
they are always at the beginning
without a watch and no place to be.
To them I say, it's ok to be half right
about what love means in the making
of a life. Not a trap, but a clearing.
Here I am, filled out by happiness
I could not otherwise have earned.
God forbid I hadn't taken every last wrong turn.
I really loved each individual take on the songs and had a lot of fun trying to decode the context clues to figure out which songs for which each poet was writing a response. I’ve always loved a good essay by a poet and the short blurbs here are just as engaging as the poetry. For instance, poet Diane Seuss discusses how she went about looking for ‘the they behind the Them. The swift within the Swift, the lips beneath the lipstick,’ in her assigned song. I enjoyed her discussion on trying to find a way to unite ‘her tropes, and mine (and Plath’s, and Emily Dickinson’s), braided beyond time, via rhyme.’ Each poem is clearly a labor of love and, as Diane Ackerman writes in her poem, Ballroom of Stars, ‘love is the ink / spilled across the pages / of our woven stories.’ This anthology truly is a collection of woven stories and it is a joy to read.
Resurrection
—Kim Addonizio
Welcome to my strip mall.
Do I look slutty in this shroud?
Peel off the labels
O my frenemy.
I've got my marching orders: put out, shut up, then implode.
Don't look so morose. I was only comatose.
I'm getting blind drunk on pink rabbits before I hit the road.
Nashville & Detroit, here I come!
I can sling a sonnet like a loaded gun.
I'm a bad bad girl. Ladies, lock up your sons.
I really feel like writing you a poem about me.
I was such a messy crime scene. You're a cop without a clue.
1 turned into a pretty tree to get away from you.
Forget about calling; I drowned my phone.
I'm not a bitch & I don't want your bone.
The only line of Gertrude Stein's I ever understood:
"It is wonderful how I am not interested."
I'm not going to hide in the nearest bathroom stall.
Honey, I'm not going to hide at all. See?
I placed my heart in Tennessee & red it was upon a hill & there it perches, singing still.
Blas Falconer writes that ‘if the song ends / the world ends with it’ and Invisible Strings is a poetically playful, emotionally engaging, and all-around delight of an anthology to keep Swift’s music ringing loudly into our hearts and across the world. This is a wonderful gathering of voices and some rather outstanding poetry and I really appreciate the love for Swift’s music that is felt on each page. Give this to the Swiftie in your life, trust me on this.
5/5
The Williams
—Naomi Shihab Nye
Somehow the voices twined around a young mind
encouraging gentle stanzas, open endings,
even in a Texas town where they wanted you
to testify before cashing a check. Heck with that, boys.
I’m heading out in my little gray boots, slim volumes
of poetry in my holster, William of Oregon, William of Maui,
drinking jasmine from an old fence. I’m finding a meadow,
children, dandelion puffs, scraps from a vintage notebook.
The double William of Paterson, New Jersey
helped keep us sane though our teachers
went crazy over that wheelbarrow.
Love it, then move on!
Riding a train north in England to the stoop
of another William’s cottage, sloped roof,
his sister’s purple-scented paper next to his,
high school memory loitering: our teacher
insisting his gloomy poem nearly led
to death. My classmates concurred,
not caring much whether some guy
leapt from a cliff long ago or not,
but I said, He grieves, but he is filled
with joy. In a strange voice
like a ringing bell, immeasurable joy, because
he grieves so much. Because he loves
so deeply all that he is seeing.
They stared at me.
I was never at home in that school.
Our teacher wanted everyone to get
the same thing from a poem.
Later home felt everywhere, radiant waters,
thistles, greenest hilltops dotted with sheep,
masses of tulips and geese, wandering William’s
intricate paths, pausing at every turn,
life stretching ahead, mountains of bliss
and searing sorrow for years to come.
They wrote it, we defended it,
it seemed joyous enough to know one could
love forever, carry on or stop right there,
and the power was yours.
And now from the distance of time
—Jane Hirshfield
And now from the distance of time
when stories are over
one in a frame on a dresser
one left to remember
you left with nowhere to leave to
a world where nothing can vanish can vanish
from inside the trees or above them
the moon blameless as I was as you were
call it weather
call it something that lives outside measure
a lifetime apart a lifetime together
are neither forever nor never
a lifetime together a lifetime apart
one person turns into another
forgive past forgive future departure
a story continues beyond its erasure
we were two oars dividing one water
and time cannot sever
As she watched Swift announce an upcoming album to be titled The Tortured Poets Department at the Grammy’s editor Kristie Frederick Daugherty found herself wondering ‘how can poets and poetry enter into conversation with Swift?’ The result became Invisible Strings. Daugherty first approached Pulitzer Prize winning poet Diane Seuss to discuss the project and Diane eagerly agreed, offering Daugherty a list of other poets to contact. Each poet involved was given their own Swift song and asked to respond to it with their own poem and then write a little bit about the process or what they felt from engaging with Swift’s music. The results are outstanding with each poet taking a unique perspective (and occasionally collaborating with other poets) that playfully engages with the imagery, rhythms, heartaches, and overall enthusiastically catchy vibes of the musician's work. Each poem feels unique and in the voice of its poet, yet also retains a quality of Swift as if the two were harmonizing together both lyrically and spiritually.
It All Comes Back to Me Now
—Maya C. Popa
Dusk, the mountains mauve,
and the samphire trembles between stones,
and the voices of long-dead singers
croon through a hotel stereo.
Theirs is a wisdom suspended in feeling:
they are always at the beginning
without a watch and no place to be.
To them I say, it's ok to be half right
about what love means in the making
of a life. Not a trap, but a clearing.
Here I am, filled out by happiness
I could not otherwise have earned.
God forbid I hadn't taken every last wrong turn.
I really loved each individual take on the songs and had a lot of fun trying to decode the context clues to figure out which songs for which each poet was writing a response. I’ve always loved a good essay by a poet and the short blurbs here are just as engaging as the poetry. For instance, poet Diane Seuss discusses how she went about looking for ‘the they behind the Them. The swift within the Swift, the lips beneath the lipstick,’ in her assigned song. I enjoyed her discussion on trying to find a way to unite ‘her tropes, and mine (and Plath’s, and Emily Dickinson’s), braided beyond time, via rhyme.’ Each poem is clearly a labor of love and, as Diane Ackerman writes in her poem, Ballroom of Stars, ‘love is the ink / spilled across the pages / of our woven stories.’ This anthology truly is a collection of woven stories and it is a joy to read.
Resurrection
—Kim Addonizio
Welcome to my strip mall.
Do I look slutty in this shroud?
Peel off the labels
O my frenemy.
I've got my marching orders: put out, shut up, then implode.
Don't look so morose. I was only comatose.
I'm getting blind drunk on pink rabbits before I hit the road.
Nashville & Detroit, here I come!
I can sling a sonnet like a loaded gun.
I'm a bad bad girl. Ladies, lock up your sons.
I really feel like writing you a poem about me.
I was such a messy crime scene. You're a cop without a clue.
1 turned into a pretty tree to get away from you.
Forget about calling; I drowned my phone.
I'm not a bitch & I don't want your bone.
The only line of Gertrude Stein's I ever understood:
"It is wonderful how I am not interested."
I'm not going to hide in the nearest bathroom stall.
Honey, I'm not going to hide at all. See?
I placed my heart in Tennessee & red it was upon a hill & there it perches, singing still.
Blas Falconer writes that ‘if the song ends / the world ends with it’ and Invisible Strings is a poetically playful, emotionally engaging, and all-around delight of an anthology to keep Swift’s music ringing loudly into our hearts and across the world. This is a wonderful gathering of voices and some rather outstanding poetry and I really appreciate the love for Swift’s music that is felt on each page. Give this to the Swiftie in your life, trust me on this.
5/5
The Williams
—Naomi Shihab Nye
Somehow the voices twined around a young mind
encouraging gentle stanzas, open endings,
even in a Texas town where they wanted you
to testify before cashing a check. Heck with that, boys.
I’m heading out in my little gray boots, slim volumes
of poetry in my holster, William of Oregon, William of Maui,
drinking jasmine from an old fence. I’m finding a meadow,
children, dandelion puffs, scraps from a vintage notebook.
The double William of Paterson, New Jersey
helped keep us sane though our teachers
went crazy over that wheelbarrow.
Love it, then move on!
Riding a train north in England to the stoop
of another William’s cottage, sloped roof,
his sister’s purple-scented paper next to his,
high school memory loitering: our teacher
insisting his gloomy poem nearly led
to death. My classmates concurred,
not caring much whether some guy
leapt from a cliff long ago or not,
but I said, He grieves, but he is filled
with joy. In a strange voice
like a ringing bell, immeasurable joy, because
he grieves so much. Because he loves
so deeply all that he is seeing.
They stared at me.
I was never at home in that school.
Our teacher wanted everyone to get
the same thing from a poem.
Later home felt everywhere, radiant waters,
thistles, greenest hilltops dotted with sheep,
masses of tulips and geese, wandering William’s
intricate paths, pausing at every turn,
life stretching ahead, mountains of bliss
and searing sorrow for years to come.
They wrote it, we defended it,
it seemed joyous enough to know one could
love forever, carry on or stop right there,
and the power was yours.
December 7, 2024
So turns out that maybe I don't like poetry and I just like Taylor Swift...either that or I just lacked the poetic knowledge to fully grasp it all.
I was really intrigued by this book as a avid Swiftie. I thought the concept sounded super interesting and different than any other book out there. I was even more into it after reading the Introduction setting up how the book came to be. It was filled with examples of Taylor's hidden easter eggs and how she pulls from poetry history.
And while I fully understand the 'easter egg' hunt game that appeals to the Swiftie realm, I think that not knowing which songs inspired each poem was a miss. When she has 274 songs, that have very similar connections - it was difficult to draw the comparisons.
As someone who requested this for her love of Taylor, in hopes to gain a better appreciation for other poetry - it was honestly hard to decipher all the poems. I was thinking too hard about what song it could be about vs really digesting the poem and appreciating it.
I don't want to give this a bad rating as it would be a disservice to the poets that gave their time and poured their feelings into their pieces. Maybe I can appreciate it more when/if the super sleuth fans determine the song to poem breakdown...
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing - Ballantine for providing me the ARC for this book.
I was really intrigued by this book as a avid Swiftie. I thought the concept sounded super interesting and different than any other book out there. I was even more into it after reading the Introduction setting up how the book came to be. It was filled with examples of Taylor's hidden easter eggs and how she pulls from poetry history.
And while I fully understand the 'easter egg' hunt game that appeals to the Swiftie realm, I think that not knowing which songs inspired each poem was a miss. When she has 274 songs, that have very similar connections - it was difficult to draw the comparisons.
As someone who requested this for her love of Taylor, in hopes to gain a better appreciation for other poetry - it was honestly hard to decipher all the poems. I was thinking too hard about what song it could be about vs really digesting the poem and appreciating it.
I don't want to give this a bad rating as it would be a disservice to the poets that gave their time and poured their feelings into their pieces. Maybe I can appreciate it more when/if the super sleuth fans determine the song to poem breakdown...
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing - Ballantine for providing me the ARC for this book.
September 14, 2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
This collection was everything!💖 Each poem felt like it was written with the heart and soul of a Taylor Swift album, and I had SO much fun trying to guess which poems were inspired by each era 🎶. From the fearless highs to the folklore vibes, every page had that perfect blend of raw, lyrical, and relatable emotion. 🌷💫
The writers in this collection are insanely talented! Their words felt deeply personal, and you could feel the vulnerability between the lines. It’s like reading little pieces of their hearts. 📝💕 Every poem left me reflecting on my own life in a way that felt so real—the perfect balance of complexity and inspiration.
If you’re a Swiftie like me, you’ll adore how much this collection feels like a poetic homage to T-Swift herself! 🌟 Such an inspiring read!
A must-read for anyone who loves lyrical, emotional poetry that speaks to the soul. ✨
Thank you NetGalley & the author for my ARC!
This collection was everything!💖 Each poem felt like it was written with the heart and soul of a Taylor Swift album, and I had SO much fun trying to guess which poems were inspired by each era 🎶. From the fearless highs to the folklore vibes, every page had that perfect blend of raw, lyrical, and relatable emotion. 🌷💫
The writers in this collection are insanely talented! Their words felt deeply personal, and you could feel the vulnerability between the lines. It’s like reading little pieces of their hearts. 📝💕 Every poem left me reflecting on my own life in a way that felt so real—the perfect balance of complexity and inspiration.
If you’re a Swiftie like me, you’ll adore how much this collection feels like a poetic homage to T-Swift herself! 🌟 Such an inspiring read!
A must-read for anyone who loves lyrical, emotional poetry that speaks to the soul. ✨
Thank you NetGalley & the author for my ARC!
May 22, 2025
“Memory is a kind of belief among the tortured.” -Love’s Cure, by Bianca Stone.
I’m disheartened by some of the reviews of this book. It’s hard to go into any store and find a collection of poetry comprised of mostly women poets, and this is a feat that this collection accomplished. I think if someone picks up this book, you should read these poems as if Taylor Swift is the muse. Each poem isn’t going to be a regurgitation of one of her songs. That would be silly and unnecessary. The song already exists. If that’s what you’re looking for, listen to her songs on Spotify and read along with the lyrics. If you’re not a poetry lover, then don’t buy the book. It’s as simple as that.
I’m disheartened by some of the reviews of this book. It’s hard to go into any store and find a collection of poetry comprised of mostly women poets, and this is a feat that this collection accomplished. I think if someone picks up this book, you should read these poems as if Taylor Swift is the muse. Each poem isn’t going to be a regurgitation of one of her songs. That would be silly and unnecessary. The song already exists. If that’s what you’re looking for, listen to her songs on Spotify and read along with the lyrics. If you’re not a poetry lover, then don’t buy the book. It’s as simple as that.
January 26, 2025
Update: After writing my review, I saw a comment on another review saying there was a cheat sheet online so I searched for it and found it. I wouldn’t say it was super easy to find. The list is not in the order of the poems in the book so you’d be best to read the poem, then search the list for the answer. I quickly went through the answers and found I was right with most of my guesses. I’m still annoyed this list wasn’t put in the book and that I didn’t know it existed online until I finished the book and for that reason but I will bump up to 3 stars, begrudgingly.
Link to the list:
https://sites.prh.com/invisible-strin...
-
This is so frustrating because if there had been a simple cheat sheet in the back of the book letting us know what song went with each poem, this would’ve been 100% more enjoyable. Instead, I had no idea for most of the poems and guesses for some but no way to check. Also, I’d simply like to read the poem knowing what song it was inspired by, especially when there isn’t anything immediately identifiable to link it to a song.
I feel like it’s false advertising as my copy’s description says nothing about the fact that they never let you know the song for each poem. But fine, cheers, I guess. I went from 3 stars to 2 stars writing this because seriously, wtf were they thinking?
Link to the list:
https://sites.prh.com/invisible-strin...
-
This is so frustrating because if there had been a simple cheat sheet in the back of the book letting us know what song went with each poem, this would’ve been 100% more enjoyable. Instead, I had no idea for most of the poems and guesses for some but no way to check. Also, I’d simply like to read the poem knowing what song it was inspired by, especially when there isn’t anything immediately identifiable to link it to a song.
I feel like it’s false advertising as my copy’s description says nothing about the fact that they never let you know the song for each poem. But fine, cheers, I guess. I went from 3 stars to 2 stars writing this because seriously, wtf were they thinking?
September 24, 2024
A range of poems based on Taylor Swift songs. Some are short and sweet, others a bit more intricate. I enjoyed all of these ✨
My favorites:
- Another version of us by Christian Gullette
- The bird in my mouth by Blas Falconer
- Seer (not a ghazal) by AE Stallings
- Honeycombed & Dangerous by Katie Darby Mullins
- Once by Laura Kasischke
- I go back to the past all the time by Jill Bialosky
- Whereby in reply by Natasha Saje
- Perennial by Andrea Gibson
- Struggle by Evie Shockley
- Espectacularistas by Rodrigo Toscano
- Another round by Didi Jackson
- For a friend, considering leaving by Hollie McNish
- Earth too by Elizabeth Scanlon
- Duet by Andrea Cohen
- Parking lot poem by Catherine Cohen
- Exit plans by Joan Kwon Glass
- Homeland by Tomás Q Morin
- Remembered by Stacy Pratt
*I received an ARC of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review with my honest opinion.*
My favorites:
- Another version of us by Christian Gullette
- The bird in my mouth by Blas Falconer
- Seer (not a ghazal) by AE Stallings
- Honeycombed & Dangerous by Katie Darby Mullins
- Once by Laura Kasischke
- I go back to the past all the time by Jill Bialosky
- Whereby in reply by Natasha Saje
- Perennial by Andrea Gibson
- Struggle by Evie Shockley
- Espectacularistas by Rodrigo Toscano
- Another round by Didi Jackson
- For a friend, considering leaving by Hollie McNish
- Earth too by Elizabeth Scanlon
- Duet by Andrea Cohen
- Parking lot poem by Catherine Cohen
- Exit plans by Joan Kwon Glass
- Homeland by Tomás Q Morin
- Remembered by Stacy Pratt
*I received an ARC of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review with my honest opinion.*
December 15, 2024
In a celebration of Taylor Swift’s storytelling prowess through song, 113 Poets take on the task of delving into her vast musical catalogue; and use the emotions/ personal experiences her lyrics evoke, to craft their own works which I found beautifully engaging.
I don’t usually read much poetry (not since my own school days at least) but found myself thoroughly invested and in full analytical detective mode whilst reading. I was utterly transfixed, trying to grasp the glimmers of Swiftian imagery & symbolism to correctly figure out which song each poem is inspired by.
Did I mention? The poets never outwardly specify which song got their creative juices flowing, so it’s an anthology that will keep readers pondering long after finishing. It’s certainly kept my attention, I keep going back trying to figure out which song inspired each poem.
So, this is definitely a must read (and perfect gift) for Swifties who enjoy analysing and decoding the intricate (nuanced) layers and details hidden in Taylor’s lyrics.
Also, a huge thank you to Isabelle over at Headline for sending me this gorgeous finished copy.
I don’t usually read much poetry (not since my own school days at least) but found myself thoroughly invested and in full analytical detective mode whilst reading. I was utterly transfixed, trying to grasp the glimmers of Swiftian imagery & symbolism to correctly figure out which song each poem is inspired by.
Did I mention? The poets never outwardly specify which song got their creative juices flowing, so it’s an anthology that will keep readers pondering long after finishing. It’s certainly kept my attention, I keep going back trying to figure out which song inspired each poem.
So, this is definitely a must read (and perfect gift) for Swifties who enjoy analysing and decoding the intricate (nuanced) layers and details hidden in Taylor’s lyrics.
Also, a huge thank you to Isabelle over at Headline for sending me this gorgeous finished copy.
December 10, 2024
I’m not a big poetry reader but I love anything Taylor-related so this was a nice way to get out of my reading comfort zone! I enjoyed some of the poems more than others but this was a good collection overall.
December 14, 2024
As with any anthology, it is more guaranteed to love a few, like a lot, and feel ambivalent toward some.
Here are my favorites:
Heaven in Grand Central Station"
"In Wonderland, We’re Surprised/Not Surprised to Learn the Chamomile Tea Tastes Bitter"
"Concessions"
"On the Stairs"
"Tempered"
"the much-maligned swiftie considers her options"
"1993"
"for a friend, considering leaving"
"The Long Marriage"
And my favorite lines:
"We prefer roadside wildflowers, faith run out of psalms, mountains of scattered petals. My jeweled valley burns bright with style. You are my rebel, my giant, the lift of your eyes daydreaming, my lips counting down the miles." -"On Again, Off Again"
Here are my favorites:
Heaven in Grand Central Station"
"In Wonderland, We’re Surprised/Not Surprised to Learn the Chamomile Tea Tastes Bitter"
"Concessions"
"On the Stairs"
"Tempered"
"the much-maligned swiftie considers her options"
"1993"
"for a friend, considering leaving"
"The Long Marriage"
And my favorite lines:
"We prefer roadside wildflowers, faith run out of psalms, mountains of scattered petals. My jeweled valley burns bright with style. You are my rebel, my giant, the lift of your eyes daydreaming, my lips counting down the miles." -"On Again, Off Again"
June 3, 2025
In the top worst books I’ve ever read
August 7, 2025
A remarkable collection of some of the brightest artists in contemporary poetry, celebrating one of the finest recording artists of our era! Love it.
August 22, 2025
Great poetry if you remove the fact it was inspired by Swift’s songs. I hate read anything about Taylor Swift but the poets who contributed are excellent and their contributions were lovely.
December 9, 2024
Thank you to Ballantine Books and Random House Publishing for the eARC. These are my honest thoughts.
I'm potentially the exact target market for this book... a Swiftie and a former English major turned prolific reader.
There were quite a few poems I LOVED. But most were just OK/meh. I get in a collection of poetry, you're going to get some serious variety. But a lot of the poems didn't translate for me from Taylor Swift to modern poetry. I felt like I was back in an English Lit class, and it wasn't fun dissecting the pieces like I thought it would be. I also felt like most of the poems were a stretch from a Taylor Swift song to the poem printed on page.
My favorite was by Tyler Knott Gregson.
Liked it one time? 3 stars.
I'm potentially the exact target market for this book... a Swiftie and a former English major turned prolific reader.
There were quite a few poems I LOVED. But most were just OK/meh. I get in a collection of poetry, you're going to get some serious variety. But a lot of the poems didn't translate for me from Taylor Swift to modern poetry. I felt like I was back in an English Lit class, and it wasn't fun dissecting the pieces like I thought it would be. I also felt like most of the poems were a stretch from a Taylor Swift song to the poem printed on page.
My favorite was by Tyler Knott Gregson.
Liked it one time? 3 stars.
April 7, 2025
this poetry anthology is the book form of me saying my dream blunt rotation is diane seuss, taylor swift, and richard siken
April 16, 2025
Happy national poetry month!
This was lovely and such a cool project! I'm 100% a Swiftie because I love her lyrics and her songwriting (plus, hello English degree), so this was right up my alley. I'm collecting below all my favorites lines from the anthology, and I also appreciated the foreword + "outros" from some of the contributors discussing their writing and listening process. I also thought the cento was so cool!!
Docking a star because I thought it was strange that there wasn't an "answers" part of the book at the end that told you what poem went to what song. I personally don't care about decoding or easter eggs (is that sacrilegious to admit lol other Swifties please don't come for me) so it would have been nice to have those handy so I could see how the song and the poem worked together, instead of trying to figure out what song the poem was responding to. That's just how I would have preferred to engage with the poems, but I understand the intent of the book was a little different!
Favorite lines:
• Memory is a kind of belief among the tortured. (Bianca Stone)
• It's the brokenness / itself, the incompleteness of who we / were, I think, that made the whole thing work. (Carl Phillips)
• nothing / is relentless / but the sea. (Ming Lauren Holden)
• If the song ends / the world ends with it. (Blas Falconer)
• My heart / whispers your name / back to the stars, / flutters like wingbeat / inside my ribs. (January Gill O'Neil)
• i munch glass / and taste our memories. (Andrea Simpson)
• He can't snare me. / I'm done with tears. They can't touch my mascara. / I'm finally in my reputation era. (Stephanie Burt with Annabel Facey and Matt Tibbins)
• Don't let anyone tell you that / you laugh too loud. And you can marry for love as many times as you please. / Also, all that 'master of one' stuff is bullshit! You can be more than one thing. / Women always are. (Shikka Malaviya)
• A year of trying to love you neatly & I'm still / scrubbing stains off of the stove. (Topaz Winters)
• They wrote it, we defended it / it seemed joyous enough to know one could / love forever, carry on or stop right there, / and the power was yours. (Naomi Shihah Nye)
• Tired of being the only cloud inn the room / I grew doors from each of my fingertips. (Jennifer Espinoza)
• When I look at you, why does it feel so much / like stargazing? (Andrea Gibson)
• As my legs leave the ground, / I close my eyes and try to catch my breath. / Someone grabs my hand. I really hope it's you. (Matthea Harvey)
• If you must blame me, then go ahead and blame me / for ruining your life by choosing, finally, to live mine (and honestly the whole rest of the poem by Paul Tran)
• some stories end so others start; all buds / will bloom again; there is no failure in changing; / leaves cannot cling to autumn pretending it's still spring; / let your life turn golden; i know you've tried / i know you care; the stars outside are gorgeous; / if you need to talk, or not, i'm here (Hollie McNish)
• What is a life / but a box of blue moments strung / together like a necklace? (Aaron Smith)
• The only thing more / human than wanting to believe in love, / is having a secret exit plan. (Joan Kwon Glass)
• You need not tell me how to remember you when you go— / I will know you are still here in another form, my love. (Kai Coggin)
• love is the ink / (spilled across the pages / of our woven stories) / and the crackling fire / (in our dialect of bones) (Diane Ackerman)
• That's how / lovely we are. Like two / comets combing our own tails. (Melissa Studdard)
• When we have bad days, we crack / them open to discover hope winking at us in the center. (Melissa Studdard)
• May / poetry find you, one day / and help you to empty the pockets of your mind. / May you find / —as one tortured poet knew— / that Icarus also flew. (Ilya Kaminsky)
• The last time we spoke, I said I love you twice. / Once, because I do; again, to see if you did too. (Cento, Dianne Seuss and Kristie Frederick Daugherty)
• If I were a girl, I would be a girl no man can answer or buy. / Read the minutes. The future holds what hands release. / I am done telling the kinder story. Pity is the rage of the lazy. / I could sing to you something true, but darling I'm going to scream. (Cento, Dianne Suess and Kristie Frederick Daugherty)
This was lovely and such a cool project! I'm 100% a Swiftie because I love her lyrics and her songwriting (plus, hello English degree), so this was right up my alley. I'm collecting below all my favorites lines from the anthology, and I also appreciated the foreword + "outros" from some of the contributors discussing their writing and listening process. I also thought the cento was so cool!!
Docking a star because I thought it was strange that there wasn't an "answers" part of the book at the end that told you what poem went to what song. I personally don't care about decoding or easter eggs (is that sacrilegious to admit lol other Swifties please don't come for me) so it would have been nice to have those handy so I could see how the song and the poem worked together, instead of trying to figure out what song the poem was responding to. That's just how I would have preferred to engage with the poems, but I understand the intent of the book was a little different!
Favorite lines:
• Memory is a kind of belief among the tortured. (Bianca Stone)
• It's the brokenness / itself, the incompleteness of who we / were, I think, that made the whole thing work. (Carl Phillips)
• nothing / is relentless / but the sea. (Ming Lauren Holden)
• If the song ends / the world ends with it. (Blas Falconer)
• My heart / whispers your name / back to the stars, / flutters like wingbeat / inside my ribs. (January Gill O'Neil)
• i munch glass / and taste our memories. (Andrea Simpson)
• He can't snare me. / I'm done with tears. They can't touch my mascara. / I'm finally in my reputation era. (Stephanie Burt with Annabel Facey and Matt Tibbins)
• Don't let anyone tell you that / you laugh too loud. And you can marry for love as many times as you please. / Also, all that 'master of one' stuff is bullshit! You can be more than one thing. / Women always are. (Shikka Malaviya)
• A year of trying to love you neatly & I'm still / scrubbing stains off of the stove. (Topaz Winters)
• They wrote it, we defended it / it seemed joyous enough to know one could / love forever, carry on or stop right there, / and the power was yours. (Naomi Shihah Nye)
• Tired of being the only cloud inn the room / I grew doors from each of my fingertips. (Jennifer Espinoza)
• When I look at you, why does it feel so much / like stargazing? (Andrea Gibson)
• As my legs leave the ground, / I close my eyes and try to catch my breath. / Someone grabs my hand. I really hope it's you. (Matthea Harvey)
• If you must blame me, then go ahead and blame me / for ruining your life by choosing, finally, to live mine (and honestly the whole rest of the poem by Paul Tran)
• some stories end so others start; all buds / will bloom again; there is no failure in changing; / leaves cannot cling to autumn pretending it's still spring; / let your life turn golden; i know you've tried / i know you care; the stars outside are gorgeous; / if you need to talk, or not, i'm here (Hollie McNish)
• What is a life / but a box of blue moments strung / together like a necklace? (Aaron Smith)
• The only thing more / human than wanting to believe in love, / is having a secret exit plan. (Joan Kwon Glass)
• You need not tell me how to remember you when you go— / I will know you are still here in another form, my love. (Kai Coggin)
• love is the ink / (spilled across the pages / of our woven stories) / and the crackling fire / (in our dialect of bones) (Diane Ackerman)
• That's how / lovely we are. Like two / comets combing our own tails. (Melissa Studdard)
• When we have bad days, we crack / them open to discover hope winking at us in the center. (Melissa Studdard)
• May / poetry find you, one day / and help you to empty the pockets of your mind. / May you find / —as one tortured poet knew— / that Icarus also flew. (Ilya Kaminsky)
• The last time we spoke, I said I love you twice. / Once, because I do; again, to see if you did too. (Cento, Dianne Seuss and Kristie Frederick Daugherty)
• If I were a girl, I would be a girl no man can answer or buy. / Read the minutes. The future holds what hands release. / I am done telling the kinder story. Pity is the rage of the lazy. / I could sing to you something true, but darling I'm going to scream. (Cento, Dianne Suess and Kristie Frederick Daugherty)
December 30, 2024
This is so fun! It also has a shameless premise, which I enjoy. Many of these poems are very, very good and memorable - I shared many of them while reading. What a joyful, fun collection/idea! The breadth of poets here is very impressive and exciting. The ordering of the poems is also very good, so this was a really fun reading experience.
While this is advertised as a fun "decoding" exercise for super fans (it's me, hi) to guess which poems were written in response to which songs, I enjoyed this most when I stopped with my intricate note-taking/code-guessing and instead "just" read this as a collection that's in conversation with many of Swift's themes (e.g., growing up, misremembering or remembering conflicts anew, falling in love, moving to new places, creating art, being taken for granted, the fallacy of independence). Really cool!!
So, ultimately, I didn't love the emphasis on decoding (especially without any "answer key" - again, I think this is more about the themes of Swift's huge body of work). Relatedly, I didn't love the forwards and, as a minor gripe, it was frustrating to flip between poet reflections in the back of the book to the given poem in the collection (I didn't pick up on the reasoning of how the reflections were ordered? This confusion makes it time consuming to find the poem that's being written about). These two let downs are especially a bummer because I think there's a lot of potential here to pull people who don't know that they'll love poetry into trying poetry. And, that does seem to be one main (the main?) goal of this collection, as reflected in the intro, book advertising, and the "playlist" of recommended books at the end. I wish the space used to give that long, decontextualized list of poetry books by the contributing poets was instead used to give more poetry education, or to identify shared themes.
But! I do love the premise of this book, many of the poems within, and I really liked the poet reflections (not all poets wrote one). Glad I read this, glad I own this, and I do recommend!
While this is advertised as a fun "decoding" exercise for super fans (it's me, hi) to guess which poems were written in response to which songs, I enjoyed this most when I stopped with my intricate note-taking/code-guessing and instead "just" read this as a collection that's in conversation with many of Swift's themes (e.g., growing up, misremembering or remembering conflicts anew, falling in love, moving to new places, creating art, being taken for granted, the fallacy of independence). Really cool!!
So, ultimately, I didn't love the emphasis on decoding (especially without any "answer key" - again, I think this is more about the themes of Swift's huge body of work). Relatedly, I didn't love the forwards and, as a minor gripe, it was frustrating to flip between poet reflections in the back of the book to the given poem in the collection (I didn't pick up on the reasoning of how the reflections were ordered? This confusion makes it time consuming to find the poem that's being written about). These two let downs are especially a bummer because I think there's a lot of potential here to pull people who don't know that they'll love poetry into trying poetry. And, that does seem to be one main (the main?) goal of this collection, as reflected in the intro, book advertising, and the "playlist" of recommended books at the end. I wish the space used to give that long, decontextualized list of poetry books by the contributing poets was instead used to give more poetry education, or to identify shared themes.
But! I do love the premise of this book, many of the poems within, and I really liked the poet reflections (not all poets wrote one). Glad I read this, glad I own this, and I do recommend!
February 14, 2025
This anthology is a testament to the endless depth of Taylor Swift's catalog. After many years of close-reading her lyrics and gleaning ever-shifting meanings, it was fascinating to see where Swift's lyrics took other people.
This anthology definitely rewards a close reading, which is something that I became too impatient to give. I ran out of steam while reading, through no fault of the poets. I did have fun searching for clues to specific songs, and I'm wondering if this would be better consumed in small chunks over time, rather than reading straight through in a few days like I did.
With some of the poems, the song that inspired it was obvious, and others I couldn't figure out for the life of me. Some are strange, many are beautiful, and all of them are interesting. Overall 3.5 stars, which has more to do with my own hangups than the quality of the poetry itself!
This anthology definitely rewards a close reading, which is something that I became too impatient to give. I ran out of steam while reading, through no fault of the poets. I did have fun searching for clues to specific songs, and I'm wondering if this would be better consumed in small chunks over time, rather than reading straight through in a few days like I did.
With some of the poems, the song that inspired it was obvious, and others I couldn't figure out for the life of me. Some are strange, many are beautiful, and all of them are interesting. Overall 3.5 stars, which has more to do with my own hangups than the quality of the poetry itself!
February 23, 2025
3⭐️
Honestly I’m probably the exact target audience for this book, but I’m starting to realize poetry is a lot harder to get into. I thought this would be the perfect place to start. But maybe poetry isn’t my thing ?
Obviously these were 113 different authors of poems, so naturally I wasn’t gonna love them all. But honest to god, as a self proclaimed Taylor swift Easter egg expert, for 90% of these it was a mega stretch to say they were “spin offs” of Taylor songs. I did love one poem and printed it out and hung it on my wall, so there’s that. But the rest was meh 🫤 for me
Honestly I’m probably the exact target audience for this book, but I’m starting to realize poetry is a lot harder to get into. I thought this would be the perfect place to start. But maybe poetry isn’t my thing ?
Obviously these were 113 different authors of poems, so naturally I wasn’t gonna love them all. But honest to god, as a self proclaimed Taylor swift Easter egg expert, for 90% of these it was a mega stretch to say they were “spin offs” of Taylor songs. I did love one poem and printed it out and hung it on my wall, so there’s that. But the rest was meh 🫤 for me
April 6, 2025
I had to have this when I discovered it at Target, being a huge fan of both poetry and Tay. I was a little worried that it might be gimmicky and that I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the poems for what they were.
Each of these poems responds to a different Swift song without using any lyrics or the song title. While I definitely found myself getting distracted trying to figure out which songs were for the poems, I also enjoyed ALL of these pieces because of that Easter egg. Sure it’s gimmicky, but that doesn’t make the good poems any less good! It just makes the bad poems more valuable!
I would definitely love to take the time to puzzle out this book and might return to it if I ever find the time, but it was a really fun read and I’m glad I got it!
Each of these poems responds to a different Swift song without using any lyrics or the song title. While I definitely found myself getting distracted trying to figure out which songs were for the poems, I also enjoyed ALL of these pieces because of that Easter egg. Sure it’s gimmicky, but that doesn’t make the good poems any less good! It just makes the bad poems more valuable!
I would definitely love to take the time to puzzle out this book and might return to it if I ever find the time, but it was a really fun read and I’m glad I got it!
March 6, 2025
i’m totally the target audience for this and i liked it :) some poems i loved, some i couldn’t quite place. i do have lots of underlined lines/stanzas so that’s gotta count for something. i think the execution of this work could have been better (ex: organizing by each era would have been a cool way to break up the book into bite size chapters - i know poetry doesn’t need chapters but i’ve always appreciated them in the ones i read). and i think the idea of an easter egg hunt is awesome! i wish there was an answer key in the back though, as many of these poems i still have no idea which song they stem from, which isn’t necessary to know and maybe that’s the point? overall i enjoyed, i’m never not going to get something out of poetry. but could see where this could have been more spectacular
August 27, 2025
I love how poetry is a cycle of being inspired by others lol. This was a well-compiled anthology, and I also liked the inclusion of the cento + explanations from some of the authors at the end. It was almost like creative nonfiction, which was cool.
I just wished there was a list of which songs inspired which poems, because trying to connect the dots like the book emphasized was kind of distracting. Overall though it was a good read!!
My top poems:
“Do Paper Dolls Still Exist?” by Rigoberto González
“Grief Observatory” by Topaz Winters
“for a friend, considering leaving” by Hollie McNish (my personal favorite)
“And now from the distance of time” by Jane Hirshfield
I just wished there was a list of which songs inspired which poems, because trying to connect the dots like the book emphasized was kind of distracting. Overall though it was a good read!!
My top poems:
“Do Paper Dolls Still Exist?” by Rigoberto González
“Grief Observatory” by Topaz Winters
“for a friend, considering leaving” by Hollie McNish (my personal favorite)
“And now from the distance of time” by Jane Hirshfield
January 20, 2025
Come for the Swift references, stay for the power of wordsmithing and poets who capture the human experience.
I haven’t figured out which poem goes with which song for most of them, and sometimes I pick it up to do a deep dive and unravel it, writing in the margins as I make connections, but that’s really just reminding me of what language can do and how much I appreciate literary craft.
What a joy to read, and to return to again and again. I will be seeking these poets’ other works, and returning to those I already own.
I haven’t figured out which poem goes with which song for most of them, and sometimes I pick it up to do a deep dive and unravel it, writing in the margins as I make connections, but that’s really just reminding me of what language can do and how much I appreciate literary craft.
What a joy to read, and to return to again and again. I will be seeking these poets’ other works, and returning to those I already own.
September 4, 2025
“The night before the full moon,
The moon seems full.
I have always loved the word guitar.
All those years of worry when I should have chosen wonder.”
Absolutely fantastic. A book full of poems inspired by Taylor Swift that includes contributions from major poets like Joy Harjo and Mary Jo Bang. I will be rereading this one many times.
The moon seems full.
I have always loved the word guitar.
All those years of worry when I should have chosen wonder.”
Absolutely fantastic. A book full of poems inspired by Taylor Swift that includes contributions from major poets like Joy Harjo and Mary Jo Bang. I will be rereading this one many times.
December 27, 2024
To be honest, I was worried that this book would be too gimmicky & on the nose, but this is actually one of the most dazzling collections of poetry I’ve ever read. It was just so pretty to read the work of these poets, all inspired by my favorite tortured poet. Long live 💜
February 11, 2025
I liked this book’s concept in theory, but some of the poems just didn’t stick with me/keep me engaged. A great Christmas gift from my sister though!
August 30, 2025
An undeniably perfect premise! . But why, why, why (unless there are like, legal issues with it) would you not name the poem they're responding to??? That's 90% of the fun!!! (Edit: the editor has replied with where to find them)
January 1, 2025
*For Swifties who want to follow along, I'm keeping a blog of my attempts at decoding each poem: https://amyhittheatmosphere.blogspot....
I received this as a gift and didn't realize that the songs that correspond with each poem wouldn't be listed in the book. I thought I could do it off-the-cuff and identify each song after reading the poem once. Joke! Then, I was just going to read through the book and skip over the poems I couldn't figure out after a few re-reads. But it felt like I wasn't doing Ms. Swift or the poets justice. So, I decided to give each poem an honest try at decoding and blog about it. Please join me over on blogspot if you're interested - I'd love to hear your thoughts!
I received this as a gift and didn't realize that the songs that correspond with each poem wouldn't be listed in the book. I thought I could do it off-the-cuff and identify each song after reading the poem once. Joke! Then, I was just going to read through the book and skip over the poems I couldn't figure out after a few re-reads. But it felt like I wasn't doing Ms. Swift or the poets justice. So, I decided to give each poem an honest try at decoding and blog about it. Please join me over on blogspot if you're interested - I'd love to hear your thoughts!
December 6, 2024
This is such a fun concept for a collection and damn did it have some amazing poets and poems in it! Some were stronger than others (as with any anthology) but people were so ambitious with their form and their easter eggs. I loved trying to figure out which poem was about which song, and my favorites were Richard Siken's, Andrea Gibson's (CO poet laureate <3) and Ellen Bass'. Also the cento and the outros at the end were very cool.
Life is ekphrasis!!!! Can't wait to give this book to the swifties in my life
Life is ekphrasis!!!! Can't wait to give this book to the swifties in my life
September 9, 2024
* I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this book. All thoughts are my own.
I love Taylor Swift and when I got the email that there was this book of poems based on her songs I was very excited! Like any anthology, there are going to be poems that resonate with me more than others and ones that I understand (and therefore like) more than others. This was a pretty mixed bag for me because I’m TERRIBLE at reading something or being asked “what song could this be” and trying to think through allll of Taylor Swift’s songs. Some are fairly obvious, but I really wish there was an appendix that listed which song each poem was inspired by so that you can try to guess but you can also check when you’re done and reread it with the lens of the song.
I did like how at the end each other described their process/their “why” for writing their poem.
I think anybody could like these poems because they’re not all obviously Taylor Swift, but I think based on the title the Swifties who are super good at finding her Easter eggs would love this!
I love Taylor Swift and when I got the email that there was this book of poems based on her songs I was very excited! Like any anthology, there are going to be poems that resonate with me more than others and ones that I understand (and therefore like) more than others. This was a pretty mixed bag for me because I’m TERRIBLE at reading something or being asked “what song could this be” and trying to think through allll of Taylor Swift’s songs. Some are fairly obvious, but I really wish there was an appendix that listed which song each poem was inspired by so that you can try to guess but you can also check when you’re done and reread it with the lens of the song.
I did like how at the end each other described their process/their “why” for writing their poem.
I think anybody could like these poems because they’re not all obviously Taylor Swift, but I think based on the title the Swifties who are super good at finding her Easter eggs would love this!
September 19, 2024
I'm not a big reader of poetry, but as a Swiftie I couldn't pass up reading this anthology. The idea is super unique. 113 poets responded to the lyrics of Taylor Swift, writing about their own experiences with Taylor’s songs. But each poem only alludes to a song, without using direct lyrics. The idea is, upon close reading of each poem, to find Easter eggs to figure out which song it is in response to.
The perfect reader of this anthology is a Swiftie who is great at identifying Easter eggs and who also is really good and experienced with reading poetry. I didn't quite fit that mold.
As an inexperienced poetry reader (the last time I did close readings of poems was college 10+ years ago), I had a hard time identifying the songs each poem was in response to. I really enjoyed reading a lot of the poems, they were beautiful, and I did find some clues here and there, but for the most part I had a hard time connecting them to songs. I know the spirit of the anthology is to look for clues and guess, but I would have loved an index or something in the back that said the songs that inspired each poem for reference.
Despite that, I did enjoy a lot of the poems. I may not have made the connections to songs, but the poems themselves were lovely to read. There were a few I didn't personally connect with, but many others that were delightful, emotional, and/or heartbreaking.
Overall, I love the concept of the anthology. Taylor Swift truly is a poet in her own right and making the connection between her songs and contemporary poetry is brilliant. I probably was not the ideal reader, but for those in the right niche, I would definitely recommend it.
Thank you to Random House for sending me an early copy to review!
The perfect reader of this anthology is a Swiftie who is great at identifying Easter eggs and who also is really good and experienced with reading poetry. I didn't quite fit that mold.
As an inexperienced poetry reader (the last time I did close readings of poems was college 10+ years ago), I had a hard time identifying the songs each poem was in response to. I really enjoyed reading a lot of the poems, they were beautiful, and I did find some clues here and there, but for the most part I had a hard time connecting them to songs. I know the spirit of the anthology is to look for clues and guess, but I would have loved an index or something in the back that said the songs that inspired each poem for reference.
Despite that, I did enjoy a lot of the poems. I may not have made the connections to songs, but the poems themselves were lovely to read. There were a few I didn't personally connect with, but many others that were delightful, emotional, and/or heartbreaking.
Overall, I love the concept of the anthology. Taylor Swift truly is a poet in her own right and making the connection between her songs and contemporary poetry is brilliant. I probably was not the ideal reader, but for those in the right niche, I would definitely recommend it.
Thank you to Random House for sending me an early copy to review!
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