Count the Ways and Other Poems: A Collection

by Rachel Sheng

"it's these scars we carry that make us human"

RACHEL SHENG, Silver Medal winner of the 2020 SCHOLASTIC ART & WRITING COMPETITION

Count the Ways and Other Poems is a series of unsent letters from a forgotten lover to the one who broke their heart. While trying to navigate the aftermath of a failed relationship, the speaker reveals the power and pain of that tumultuous feeling: love. The most reasonable choice would be to forget and move on, but their heart, haunted by the memories that are no more, refuses to do so. The agonized writer's letters reveal moments of pure bliss captured in their mind, transferred onto paper as they ask again and again: why did this have to end?

Throughout their journey, the speaker revisits memories from childhood all the way to the present, recounting the times when they met people with broken souls and wondered how they had gotten there. Too late, they realize that, by letting the brokenness take over, they have grown up and forgotten how to hope, and search desperately for the attachment that they yearn for. Challenging time, belief, and love itself, Count the Ways and Other Poems is as much about the hurting as it is about the healing.

Through beautifully wrought verse, Rachel Sheng writes of a mind whose memories clash with reality, who cannot come to terms with what has happened. Within these pages, the pain takes form and grows, revealing a beauty that cannot be found with happiness alone.

128 pages, Paperback

Published November 21, 2020

Reviews

[M.A. Dubbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely poems that play with format

Wow, what an impressive collection for such a young poet! Count the Ways is broken up into seven sections of lengthy poems. The poems lack punctuation and play with form and rhythm.

I especially enjoyed “Mister Tofu” and the narrator’s mixed heritage.

Great work and a young writer to watch out for as she grows!

[Joshua Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rachel Sheng navigates the rocky waters of pain in Count the Ways and Other Poems! After experiencing a failing relationship, the fictional writer sends a series of poetic letters trying to come to terms with the pain, revisiting both unhappy and blissful memories. Sheng’s collection is beautiful, and very creative in how it tells a story through the series of poems! Though not always happy, focusing more on the emotion of pain itself, there was great meaning and depth built into this emotional piece! If you love poetry or are looking to stir your emotions, come search for meaning with Count the Ways!

[Tajammul Kothari · Rating 5 out of 5]

I totally loved this collection of prose that highlights the range of emotions that one goes through after a heartbreak. The book talks about the despair and the mental challenges that come after the loss of love and the pain associated with it.

I particularly liked how the author has used the form of letters to describe the different emotions right from her childhood to the present. Divided into seven sections, each poem has the ability to make one feel as the essence of the poems stays with the reader for a long time.

I especially liked the section “Sorrow” where the emotions are in its purest form and also the last section “Rebirth” as the poems in it resonates hope after the pain.

In general, it’s a book to treasure, not only for poetry readers but for all.

[L. Zieanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful book of heartfelt poetry. I read it more than once and found a great deal I liked inside it – even the book’s blurb is exquisite. Ms. Sheng’s depth of feeling leaps right off the page.