{"id":968,"date":"2024-11-11T12:01:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-11T12:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/?p=968"},"modified":"2024-11-11T12:01:00","modified_gmt":"2024-11-11T12:01:00","slug":"book-review-blue-california-sky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/?p=968","title":{"rendered":"Book Review: Blue California Sky"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Blue California Sky<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

by B.L. Bruce<\/p>\n

Genre:<\/strong> Poetry<\/p>\n

ISBN: <\/strong>9798888387580<\/p>\n

Print Length:<\/strong> 41 pages<\/p>\n

Publisher:<\/strong> Finishing Line Press<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Reviewed by Kristine Eckart<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>A ruminative look at grief and our lives through the small moments of nature<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In this collection of poems, B.L. Bruce uses nature to look back and reflect on meaningful moments of her life\u2014moments of love and joy, of loss and grief, of anger and turmoil.<\/p>\n

A constant comparison of the past and the present, Blue California Sky<\/em> begins with the intricacies of love with \u201cYears Gone\u201d and \u201cIn the Beginning,\u201d contemplating the blossoming of love and the small things like the scent and feel of another\u2019s body so close to one\u2019s own. Moving through time, \u201cWhat Happens When the Magic Dissipates\u201d and \u201cThere\u2019s Only So Much I Can Do\u201d investigate how love changes through the years, all the things one expects, and all the surprises along the way.<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/em><\/strong>For you, I\u2019d have crossed deserts on my hands and knees.\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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But this collection is about more than romantic love; it also explores familial love and the grief of losing one\u2019s family. \u201cOnce Each Year\u201d references the small details that surface when the author recalls the day her sister went missing and the annual pruning in the garden her mother does in a ritual of grief.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThey say sadness is held in the hips, anger in the mouth. These are the places I hold you: the pit of my belly, my throat. And the slow dances of the years, where do we hold them? In scars that mark the chapters of our lives, our told stories?\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Appearing in several poems including \u201cRoses on the State Park Overpass,\u201d the image of white roses ties the disappearance of the speaker\u2019s sister to the suicide of a woman in town and the speaker\u2019s own attempt, a symbol of pain and turmoil budding through a life.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I most enjoyed the observations of nature that reflect the inner thoughts and emotions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In \u201cEach Morning For Nine Days,\u201d the speaker scans the sunrise, noting the way it makes her feel small against the magnitude of the world, wondering if the generations that observe future sunrises will feel the same. \u201cA Few Days Ago\u201d marvels at snow-topped mountains, snow\u2019s inherent ability for melting reflecting the desire for something permanent. Finally, in I \u201cFind It Curious,\u201d we recall the immortality of Robin\u2019s egg blue in the speaker\u2019s memory, forever tied to the loss of her sister and to other blue hues like the sky overhead, a symbol that contributes to the collection\u2019s title.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This collection will resonate with readers who enjoy the pleasures of nature and those who may find poetry unapproachable because this collection is easy to enjoy in small bites, a page a day adding emotion and Californian scenery to your world.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/em><\/strong>And yet, the moon smiles down at you. You are healing.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Thank you for reading Kristine Eckart\u2019s book review of Blue California Sky <\/em>by B.L. Bruce! If you liked what you read, please spend some more time with us at the links below.<\/p>\n

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The post Book Review: Blue California Sky<\/a> appeared first on Independent Book Review<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Blue California Sky by B.L. Bruce Genre: Poetry ISBN: 9798888387580 Print Length: 41 pages Publisher: Finishing Line Press Buy from Amazon Buy from Bookshop Reviewed by Kristine Eckart A ruminative look at grief and our lives through the small moments of nature In this collection of poems, B.L. Bruce uses nature to look back and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":969,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-968","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bookreviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/968"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=968"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/968\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}