Book Review – The Moon Will Listen

The Moon Will Listen by Beau Allen

Beau’s Instagram link: @beauapoet
The Amazon link

I read this book in paperback. This is an unsolicited review.

What I Loved:

Nearly every piece speaks of some aspect of the moon, in relation to love, it’s unattainability, it’s beauty, its loneliness, and more. I felt Mr. Allen really put together a stellar collection of free-verse and micro- poetry. At a slim just-under-100 pages, I wanted more but it wasn’t “too short”. There are throughout the book, (which, by the way, is printed on black background entirely) a smattering of very dark photos that go perfectly. When I say dark, I don’t mean emotionally, but more nighttime photography (stars, the moon, and the like). There is no mention if he is the photographer or who is the artist, but regardless, they all enhance the overall theme.

When I first unwrapped this book, I was impressed with how good it looked with those dark pages. Great font choice, it was a joy to read through it. His grasp of the heart and the emotions are tangible and relatable.

I liked reading his letters to the reader as well as his acknowledgments. They felt very personal and truly made me empathize even more with the author. This goes a long way with readers, the gratitude, humility, and humanity of a writer.

What I Didn’t:

Of course, Amazon being… well, Amazon, known for its low-quality printing, there are some pages which were trimmed poorly, but not a huge distraction, and certainly not the author’s fault.

No, my only complaints were, I do prefer longer books, say 150-pages+ but it didn’t feel TOO short. And secondly, there were some awkward formatting when it came to headers and page numbering, but that’s all aesthetics.

My Favorite Bits:

“Spent Every Wish” – wishing on everything from the stars to birthday candles to dandelions… in the end, all wishes have a cost. I loved this piece.
“Silhouette” – “looking back I can tell you the exact moment I became more of a silhouette than a man…”
“Letters to the Moon” – “… I will be your setting sun to set you free into the night”

My Overall Score:

4.75 stars

(1/4 for minor formatting flaws and the shorter length)

Final Thoughts:

This is actually Mr. Allen’s second book, I realized after purchasing this one, so I will be getting his first book as well. This is one of my favorite poetry books right now and I’d love to see more from him.

Highly recommended to those who appreciate short free-verse and micro-poetry and love, loss, heartache, and the human condition.

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be a good writer: read.
~tara caribou

**If this review was helpful or you’ve read it and want to add to the discussion, please let me know in the comments!

I will also, as a side-note, say, it may seem that I am harsh on many writers for their editing, formatting, grammar, punctuation, etc. I do so unapologetically. One, because this is a review, not a popularity contest. Two, because honest criticism should help us grow as artists.

The fact of the matter is, these things MATTER. A mathematician must use his tools and use them correctly to be an effective mathematician. A surgeon cannot simply say, “I know I can’t sew the wound closed but at least I could remove the appendix or whatever it’s called.” Same with writers. We can’t claim to be writers but refuse to use proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation. We can’t claim to be a photographer just because we know how to push the button on the camera (or phone). There’s an art to it.

So while I may appreciate the artist as a person and their words, I believe that it does us all a disservice to say lower quality editing is okay. Believe in yourself! Believe in the power of your words! Put the effort into being the very best you can be. Ask for help. Grow and learn.