Book Review: The Sun and Her Flowers by Rupi Kaur

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I have wanted to read Rupi Kaur’s poetry for AGESSSSSS. I was first introduced to Rupi Kaur from her book Milk and Honey that went instantly viral because of her ‘Instapoetry’. Kaur uses aesthetic fonts, drawings and is known for her short line poetry. Whilst her poetry has been well received, it has also been heavily criticised as well. It’s been criticised for not being original and lacking quality compared to more traditional and conventional poetry. So I came into this book ready to critique it but honestly, I really enjoyed it. This book gave me a whirlwind of emotions from sadness, anger to optimism and hope.

Showing an excerpt of the titled poem, Rupi Kaur complements her poetry with really simple and aesthetically pleasing illustrations much like Lin Manuel’s poetry Gmorning, Gnight!: Little Pep Talks for Me & You which you can read my review here.

Rupi Kaur’s The Sun and Her Flowers is divided into sections that delve into certain topics: mainly on relationships, sexual trauma, the immigrant experience and self-love and feminism. Kaur writes really sensitive topics eloquently. Whilst some of the poems came across a little cliched, I still really enjoyed a lot of them.

My favourite and most heartfelt section of her poetry was definitely about the immigrant experience -it was something I could really relate to having immigrant parents myself and understanding the sacrifices and uncertainties they navigate in their present world.

I did find that I did not like her longer poems as much.

it felt like there were

just random

sentence breaks

is that

poetry?

I get that this is overhyped and I understand this is not everyone’s style. This is exactly the kind of poetry that would be in an Urban Outfitters for someone to purchase for ‘aesthetic reasons’. However, I can appreciate that Kaur is exposing people to the wonderful art of poetry and writing. She writes really sensitive topics on sexual trauma, failed relationships and self-hate.

The Sun and Her Flowers taught me the importance of growth and healing and successfully made me come to terms with my emotions and how to create change and self-love.

Judging online, this book seems a bit more well received than Milk and Honey. I enjoyed reading The Sun and Her Flowers and could not put it down.