When analyzing poetry, one of the most common problems we face as readers is the question “Does this actually make me feel anything new?” We must then double this question again when we learn that what we are about to read is a collection of poems about the end of a relationship—perhaps the most common topic of all time found in poetic form. Thankfully, Rylie Martin has given us a collection about this process of grief and healing that actually does make us feel something new. In her work The Heartwood Poetry Collection, her originality and fresh imagery bring us on a journey through heartbreak, traveling through the stages of pain, disbelief and finding acceptance.

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Mark Derosier ~ Professional Literary Reviewer