The Madness Vase: By Andrea Gibson Paperback – September 15, 2011

Andrea Gibson will make you believe in people again. Maybe not in all of humanity, but just enough that you feel that spark inside that tells you you're not the only one out there with a heart. That it's not bad to feel empathy for others.Andrea excels at spoken word/slam poetry and sets the bar. High. Listening to her words is at times an otherworldly experience. She can make your heart beat hard for people and situations that you've previously never even considered. She can bring you to tears by the way she so accurately describes exactly what you've felt and thought no one else could ever understand. Like, " yes, that's it!! Why haven't I thought to word it that way before?" Sometimes you'll want to keep her poems safe with you and not want to share something so personal with others. Sometimes you're bursting at the seams to share them with anyone who will listen. It's an intensely personal experience and truthfully I've so far found myself disappointed by people just not feeling it as strongly as I do when I share it with them. But I'm sure - if you find someone who can appreciate this the way you do, you'll have something truly unique.This isn't an audio recording of Andrea's powerful performances. This is her words on paper. Sometimes slightly different than how you may have heard them recited, but her words nonetheless. It's almost like a comfort to have. Recently I've donated nearly all of my books, but I've kept all of my poetry books, especially this one. It's just nice to know it's there. In your hands. On your shelf. Whatever. If you ever need to feel that spark, you don't need to quick hunt down a youtube video or audio file. You have it with you always. You can see the line breaks. You can almost hear her raspy inhales as you read to yourself. You can go back and review lines in her poems that may not have stood out to you before. Over and over. You can highlight it, underline it, make notes, share it with friends, whatever. It's yours. Ours. Whatever.Also the cover is very soft and that's cool, too.

I was surprised to discover that this is only Andrea Gibson's second book of poetry as she has made such a name for herself already as a poet, performer, activist, and just an overall kick-ass person. After reading her first collection Pole Dancing to Gospel Hymns (which I also recommend) and finding myself entranced time and time again by her live performances, needless to say the bar was set pretty high for The Madness Vase. I am delighted to say that Gibson not only meets expectations but pummels them! Her poetry grabs hold of your heartstrings right from the very first poem. Despite how easy it is to lose yourself in her startlingly relevant poems, in both subject matter and style it is in-your-face apparent that Gibson is a talented and conscious writer. As always, Write Bloody Publishing is not providing us with more fluffy poems about flowers and sunsets - although I'm sure they'd pull it off tactfully if they tried - these poems are raw, revealing things about life, love and ourselves that we might otherwise might not wanted to have taken a look at. The Madness Vase is a beautiful journey that you will feel grateful to Gibson for once you have finished.

I came across Andrea Gibson after reading about slam poetry. I read the eponymous poem which opens this collection and I decided to purchase it. I was blown away by the intimate, candid and often heartbreaking nature of her poetry. "Somewhere, a carpenter" is one of the most beautiful poems I've ever read. Gibson talks about love and life in a way that is direct and engaging and it is easy to relate to her even if your life is nowhere similar to hers. That, in my mind, makes a great poet. Purchase this book and then check her performances on YouTube. You won't regret it.

Andrea Gibson, again, does an awe-inspiring job of gripping our lungs with her words. Her poems leave me breathless. So much so that the only thing I want for oxygen is...more. "The Madness Vase" is, quite literally, Gibson writing through the madness that life brings us: love, confusion, pain, death, anger, understanding, and much more. The opening poem of the book gives us a small bit of her lesson(s), her story -- just keep writing. Even if nothing makes sense and the words don't come out right and there a people telling you to stop. For Gibson (and for me as well), writing is one of the few things that innately (from as deep as your roots will reach) makes sense...especially in the world we live in. Her words are honest and free-flowing like heartbeats. Her poems, for example "How It Ends" (a poem a recite to my partner at night), have this ability of keeping you enraptured in the metaphor without losing you, but you also don't know where it's going to take you. It's enough to either make you cry or lullaby you to sleep. Andrea Gibson is a speaker-box inspiration. I can't wait to write for WriteBloody one day. Buy this book! Read it a bajillion times by yourself and then share it with everyone else!

This poetry collection is not for everyone: graphic in places, many triggers for the sensitive and those who may not be in a healthy mental place, wrestling with LGBTQ+ issues and Christianity, and occasional cursing. BUT for those whom it is for, it is great: full of heart and heartbreak and all the other feels, interesting and original turns of phrase and use of language, undeniable talent, and keen observations. I fell in the latter camp, even though it did make me uncomfortable at times. It was like metaphorical medicine, building empathy, cultivating immunity to toxic elements of prevailing culture, and shaking complacency. If it appeals to you, it's well worth the read.