Creative Words
Poetic Reflections on Creativity, Creation, and the Power of Words
Creative Words is a meaningful poetry collection and a work of layered creativity.
Neil E. White’s Creative Words is a sensitive, thought-provoking poetry collection about the inspiring relationship between creativity and art.
This brief selection of poems investigates the link between wonder and expression. It takes a determined stance from the beginning, asserting art’s role as a force that elevates others. Inspired by art, music, and psychological or philosophical concepts made by other creators, the book rejects the stereotype of the dour, angst-ridden poet in favor of the suggestions that poetry is uplifting. As the opening lines of “The Pathos of the Pen” say:
To be a poet doesn’t mean to wallow in misery or to live a cursed life,
To never know love or joy or hope, but rather it is to acknowledge and see
Those parts of our lives that give meaning to the height and the width and the depth
Of the human experience.
The collection embodies this desire to use art as a way of tapping into a higher intelligence or meaningful calling.
Using emotional fragments that each encapsulate a single idea, the free verses of this poignant collection tend to focus on well-defined narratives, symbols, or metaphors. Anxiety is “the abyss of a future created by the demons of depression,” while an anti-war character is a “sage whose wisdom can cut through the proud prognostication of fools.” The poems explore and expand on these one-to-one comparisons, with each line building on the assertions of the one before it. Some word play is involved, and one poem’s alliteration and arrangement in alphabetical order constitutes a fun, feisty, and gentle break in the book’s flow of affirming adages.
The book’s openhearted and sincere language is appealing. While it tends to explore the cerebral and spiritual aspects of art, it is accessible. Its metaphors and comparisons are refreshing, and it approaches its symbols and similes with levity. Its overall tone is encouraging and direct, and no syllable is wasted. The poems’ lines are clear and uncluttered, with declarative statements, emphasis, and tight end rhymes favored. Though the nature of life, humanity’s responsibilities, and poetry are recurring themes, each piece is unique. Some personalized poems are included; these are the most wistful in the collection, featuring deep looks at the impact of poetry on White’s life.
Creative Words is a meaningful poetry collection whose layered creativity shows how emotions, ideas, and artwork interact with one another.
Reviewed by
Claire Foster
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
