Title: Suspend
Author: Hister Grant
Publisher: XlibrisUK
ISBN: 987-1-5245-9794-8
Pages: 64
Genre: Poetry
Reviewed by: Suzanne Gattis

Read Book Review

It is said the author puts in his or her thoughts to create poetry, but I suppose what the reader takes out of the words is what, after all, has the biggest impact. That being said, Suspend by Hister Grant has definitely piqued my interest in reading more into this genre. While I found the book to be a little dark, who would have known that short one to two-page poems could have such an impact on a reader?

I was captured from almost the very beginning with the poem “Assumed Deluge.” One line in particular caught my attention. “Maybe it’s not what you write but that you write.” I found that very moving. At times it not the end result that matters but it is instead the process of getting there; the actual creation of something that is real and tangible.

One wonders what the author must have been going through at the time, as many of the poems deal with unhappy and unusual topics. Just the titles of the poems were somber and showed a misery that the reader wishes to see the root care of. The flow was intriguing; the writing was raw. I feel as if he was almost standing completely exposed in front of the reader, bearing all, both the good and the bad. It is obvious during the three years of writing his collection that the author was searching for connection to and some sort of meaning within the Universe. It is full of angst; both internal and external struggles.

The overall tone of the book is unhappy, so a reader that wants a feel-good experience of this book might find it a little heavy at times. Otherwise, I would recommend this book to readers who are not afraid to take a glimpse into a darker side. Author Hister Grant is not afraid to explore the darkest recesses of the mind, in his book Suspend, but embraces them and the result is some hauntingly beautiful poetry. For fans of dark poetry, this is a must read. But even if not your favorite genre, you will find some poems that you will read again and again. Suspend is an insightful and thought provoking book, this collection is a beautiful collection of dark verse.