These Are the Words

by Nikita Gill

Overview

"A compassionate, restorative collection" Kirkus Reviews

From international poetry sensation Nikita Gill comes her highly anticipated YA debut These Are the Words: an empowering, feminist and beautifully illustrated poetry collection exploring all the things Nikita wished someone had told her when she was younger.

Reclaim your agency. Discover your power. Find the words.

Taking you on a journey through the seasons of the soul, in this collection Nikita gives you the words to help heal from your first breakup, to celebrate finding your family, to understand first love, to express your anger and your joy, to fight for what you believe in and to help you break some rules to be your truest self.

Gorgeously illustrated throughout by Nikita herself and featuring seasonal astrological poetry, this collection is an achingly beautiful, stunningly warm and fearless expression of truth from one of the most influential and well-known voices in modern poetry.

REMINDER FOR HEALING

You do not owe anyone your forgiveness.

The trees do not apologize to the wind that uproots them.

The rocks do not apologize to the erosion by the sea.

The stars do not apologize to the universe

when they are writhing and dying out.

And you are not obligated to forgive anyone

but yourself.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781529083606
Publisher:	Pan Macmillan
Publication date:	10/10/2023
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	7.60(w) x 5.10(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Nikita Gill is a British-Indian poet, playwright, writer and illustrator living in the south of England. She has published five collections of poetry: Your Soul Is A River, Your Heart is the Sea, Wild Embers Fierce Fairytales and Great Goddesses.

She is the editor of the poetry anthology SLAM! and a novel in verse called The Girl and Goddess was published on National Poetry Day 2020.

Editorial Reviews

2023-08-11
British Indian poet and playwright Gill’s first work for young adults is a tender, feminist examination of hard topics that honors quiet moments of healing and connection.

This poetry collection, organized around the four seasons, has sections that begin with a line of advice for each sign in the zodiac. Many of the poems focus on women’s bonds and identity: There are meditations on the women who have come before and those who will come after, emphasizing enduring mutual support. Romantic love, with partners of different genders, and self-love are explored next. The family section delves into toxic family ties and different parental reactions to coming out. There’s also a powerful meditation on colorism: “As a child, the aunties called my sister Coal. / Coal because of the colour of her skin, / not because of her ability to become fuel, / to glow so brightly despite them.” The next few sections—on hurting, protest, and body image—are empowering, inclusive reminders of one’s value. Topics like microaggressions, climate change, and the importance of voting are addressed: “You deserve a future filled with hope.” The concluding pieces about healing, friendship, and found family are soothing and beautiful. The concise poems, many of which contain abstract ruminations that feel relevant to many moments of joy and pain, combined with Gill’s black-and-white sketches, are accessible and welcoming.

A gentle emphasis on hope and healing makes this a compassionate, restorative collection. (author’s note) (Poetry. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews