BOOK REVIEW
“People leave but their actions always stay back to haunt your soul.”
Sunflowers at Dusk, is a roller-coaster of emotions read written by Maahi Patel. Although it’s a quick read, there’s a lot to work through in a fascinating sense that it’s short, but impactful.
Each poem has elegant and poignant writing, exploring themes of acceptance, change, love, life, and pain. There’s a sense that Patel searched the deepest corners of herself for this collection to blend each poem in reliability, yet individual to herself.
Throughout the 80 poems, there’s different poetic structures which adds variety to the read, combining poetic influences alongside her minimalist artwork. It’s clear to see Patel is writing beyond her years in the sense she’s brave with how she picks topics to write about, and her voice perfectly comes through.
Including lines like, “I was a child with sad eyes,” and “all I want is silence,” really showcases how Patel truly felt with a sense of darkness she wanted to creatively work through, in-turn, writing, “be your own superhero.”
The time and effort Patel put into this book is reflected wonderfully upon reading. She thoughtfully placed each story with meaning alongside another with purposeful words making it a heartfelt read. Each poem is impactful, and her writing showcases her effortless talent with elegance. The presentation is mesmerising with a complexity of placing each poem perfectly. Although each piece appears to be different, in another way they somehow connect overall.
Sunflowers at Dusk, is a heartfelt and beautifully written collection of poetry in just under 100-pages. It was an interesting read as it was not broken up into sections, rather a run-on story from beginning to end.
Maahi Patel has been writing poetry since she was 11-years-old. She finds comfort in words and by annoying those around her. She is usually in her bedroom reading, singing tone-deaf, or trying to keep her plants alive. Sunflowers at Dusk, is her debut poetry collection.
Words by Danielle Holian
INTERVIEW
Tell us a bit about your writing background.
I started writing around the age of 11-12, mostly just to find a release. I remember being quite overwhelmed by my emotions and not really knowing how to deal with them so I tried penning them down. I started writing poetry very randomly and I was mesmerised. I would show my poems to everyone, not really caring how they reacted. I had discovered a new form of art, and I was too excited to care about anybody’s opinion. Falling in love with poetry was an enchanting experience, one that I always wish I could relive.
What, or who, inspired you to start writing?
Growing up as an anxious, introverted teenager, words became my safe haven. I was more moved by words I read than by people I interacted with, and I longed to make such an impression with my words. I felt as if I could compensate for what I lacked in my personality with my poems. Although when I started writing more personal things, I started to keep them to myself, afraid of people judging me. This anxiety further fuelled me to express myself even less, and keep to my diary.
And what influenced your debut poetry collection Sunflowers at Dusk?
Writing a book has been one of my wildest dreams! It was never about people buying it or liking it, it was more about writing a book and putting it out there. For the longest time, I was too nervous and scared to show anyone my work. I started an anonymous blog, slowly mustering up the courage to publicly tell people that it was mine. Publishing my poems felt like the ultimate way to own up to my work. There’s no turning back once you release it out there for people to judge and criticise. I longed to have the confidence to actually do it. The pandemic was an eye-opener for me. It forced me to face a lot of things head on, including going through with my book. It cost a lot of sleepless nights, hours-long phone calls with friends and family members, and a lot of praying, but I finally did it!
How has your life in general influenced your work in general?
Writing poetry is extremely personal for me, so I mostly write about things that I have gone through. Incidents that have made a lasting impact on me, or emotions I have felt too strongly, all of those find their way into my poems. While I was in school, I was often slut-shammed and body shamed. It took a huge toll on my self-esteem and I turned to poetry for comfort. I started writing about what it was like being body shamed and losing my confidence, and that resonated with a lot of people. I was a little surprised as I had no idea it was such a common issue. So my life has definitely directly influenced a lot of my writing.
And how do you find the balance between writing about your own personal experiences and exploring topics that may not necessarily be autobiographical, but still speak to many people?
I feel in order to make your work speak out to a large number of people, the emphasis should be on the emotion and not the incident that made you feel that way. Not everyone will be able to connect with an exact incident, but will definitely have felt the same emotions. Whenever I’m writing, I try to walk the reader through what I felt, instead of confusing them with mundane details. For me, there’s also greater freedom with this approach, as I can go beyond actual events that happened and paddle through various hypotheticals.
What makes a piece of your writing right to post on your Instagram, versus the ones that stay in the book?
I think this depends on your audience, but definitely post something that is gripping and wants the reader to read more. The best ones ought to stay in the book, but poems that resonate more with a large number of people, are easier to read, etc. are best suited for Instagram.
And finally, what advice would you give to aspiring writers?
I don’t think I have reached that stage to be able to go around giving advice, but one thing that I wish I could tell anyone who is writing, is to have confidence. If you think your work is honest and fresh, go for it. Also, I can’t emphasise this enough but typos aren’t the end of the world. Cut yourself some slack and have faith in your work.