Florida

Poetry and Prose

Poetry - General
84 Pages
Reviewed on 12/19/2023
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    Book Review

Reviewed by Jamie Michele for Readers' Favorite

Florida: Poetry and Prose by Glenn Erick Miller is a collection of the author's original poetry and two short stories, all of which are depicted against the backdrop of the titular Sunshine State. They range in length, style, tone, and tenor, from the lengthier reflective, introspective, and narrative-driven Downsizing and its raw look at the emotional and practical challenges of letting go, the passage of time, and the internal conflict associated with simplification to the abstract and minimalist Winter, portraying the cyclical nature of the season, expressed through repetition and the contemplation of routine activities within a cold, dark period. The flash fiction Weightless revolves around a near-death experience that occurs with a person who has already survived death before, witnessed helplessly by a loved one on the ground.

Glenn Erick Miller does an exceptional job of centering his compilation of work in a single space, even when that space is over 65,000 square miles, in his book Florida. Poetry resonates differently with each reader, but I found that Miller's stood out to me for a few different reasons. The first is a combination of poetry and prose, with the latter using its more straightforward style of communicating a message to follow the less overt themes of the former. The second is in the quality of the work itself. I particularly enjoyed the satirical and hyperbolic poem (Not) Only in Florida, using exaggeration and humor to depict eccentricities attributed to Florida, challenging perceptions. Miller's work is intelligent and witty, the type of writing that has the confidence to appear not to take itself too seriously without undermining that everything we think, see, and feel is serious, no matter how trivial we determine it to be. Very highly recommended.