Book Review: Water Runs Red

Water Runs Red 

by Jenna Clare

(Finished reading: 25/07/19)

3.5/5 stars

Beautiful, magical, relatable.

"in an age of division,
the devil's job is easy,
for all she must do
is wait for chaos to breed."

Water Runs Red is a poetry collection by writer, photographer and Youtuber Jenna Clare. The collection covers themes such as identity, body image, relationships, mental health and spirituality. These themes are told through magical and fantastical narratives involving tyrant rulers and misunderstood witches. Despite this amazing concept, I was initially drawn to the collection because of its stunning visual elements. The collection is largely told through Jenna's striking photography layered with illustrations and handwriting which really help to bring the poetry to life.

I thought this collection was incredibly creative and aesthetically very beautiful. A lot of work clearly went in to selecting and editing all the photos and poems and the overall effect is just gorgeous. I liked that I could identify the inspiration for this collection too. For example, the use of blanked out eyes reminded me a lot of Ransom Riggs' use of images in his Miss Peregrine series. The writing style also reminded me of Rupi Kaur and Amanda Lovelace's poetry as well as other contemporary poets. I also really liked how Taylor Swift was clearly such a huge inspiration for Jenna that she included her through her words and images. 'Fangirling' is not often represented and I think including those who inspire us in our work is a really strong way to get across the overwhelming passion that goes into any creative work.

The themes in the poetry felt very relatable and close to home. And yet, they were softened by the running narrative which meant they didn't pierce your heart uncomfortably but instead touched you lightly and powerfully. I loved how Jenna identified herself as a witch in a world full of prince's and princesses. I think this feeling of being misunderstood is one that many of us can relate to. There also seemed to be a sprinkle of wisdom brushed across the pages as certain poems felt very profound and even political in some cases. I think this really added to the collection as a lot of collections are much more personal and an expression of internalised feelings whereas Jenna's felt that it achieved both the rawness of personal experience but also the hope for society to learn from wrongdoings as individuals do.

I really liked the representation of asexuality too because it is an area of the community which is very under-represented. The poems explained asexuality through the emotions and turmoil of an asexual person which I think is a vitally important way of exploring sexuality in the media. I think we often misjudge just how much society is built on lustful feelings and sexual attraction that it becomes hard to imagine how this affects those who do not fit into the 'expected' mould. Reading about Jenna's experiences dealing with her sexuality made me really appreciate how strong she and other members of the LGBTQ+ community are despite what they have gone through in order to get where they are now.

My only real criticism is that I think the collection would have been much better with far less poems. As much as I loved so many of the poems, the majority felt like page-fillers. A lot of them seemed very recycled and it just felt like I was reading the same poem over and over sometimes. This may have been done for emphasis but I think it began to take away the meaning by over doing it. I would have much preferred a smaller collections with only the best poems and then some pages that were purely just photography. I found that a lot of the time I was enjoying the photos much more than the poetry so I just wished the poems had been as good as the photos all the way through. Having said this, it is really impressive just how much is included and I really do appreciate the work that has gone into such a vast collection.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading such a unique and visual collection. The photography was such a key asset to me enjoying this collection and I really hope to see other poets following suit.