I have never done a review for a friend. Why? First, because I
don't didn't have any friend who wrote any books; second, because I didn't want to feel pressured to write a good review because they're my friend and "Hey, you want me to do well dont you? What if I fail because of your review;" and third, because I am almost 100% sure that my decision will not be counted because everyone will think I gave them a good review just because they're my friend and if someone else buys the book they'll find out it's really a crap box of crap that they hate.
Then, when my friend, J Morgan asked me to review his book for my blog I (surprisingly) said yes. Why? Well he's the only friend I know in real life who actually likes books (albeit different books than me) and likes them enough to discuss them with me, and the only one who actually looked at my page to see what all the fuss was about (he wasnt interested in being a devoted, read-every-post follower but still, the one time visit spoke volumes). I was also a bit happy that he thought about me as soon as the book was written.
That being said, I want you all to know that this review is written as if he was not my friend. Did he get special treatment? YES! His book was pushed to the top of my list, but that's there the special treatment ends. If anything, I'm more stringent on him than I am on others b/c I want to be able to brag and not look like a fool. "Don't embarrass me J Morgan!" Ha! He asked that I provide a critical review and I take that as my cue to bash him if the book is horrible and scold him for ruining my life. (I'm a great friend, right?) Here goes....
Book: EISI (Everybody is Somebody's Inspiration: 1st Edition)
By: J Morgan
Publication Date: January 22, 2012
Publisher: Self Published
Description: People often look at a single person’s success and only see the end result. Many of them do not understand the underlying factors that go into turning a dream into a reality.
“Everybody Is Somebody’s Inspiration” is a culmination of different poems and essays that were written after an experience, or an interaction with one or more of the people who inspire me. Whether you realize it or not, you provide inspiration for someone’s life. This is not a difficult role to fulfill, but its importance is unmatched. Simply being who you are, and doing things the way you do is more than enough to fill that role.
Who will you inspire?
My Thoughts: This book doesnt fit into my parameters of normal reading. I like the unreal, paranormal, romance type of stuff, and this book is real; very, very, real.... but in a good way.
Told from the point of view of an African American male, this short series of poems and short stories is very deep. It embodies Soul and Rhythm and digs into your mind in ways I haven't encountered in quite some time. If the ideas and thoughts of a man were written, this would be it. Like a man, this book felt raw, rugged and unedited. I must warn you that it does reference some sexual content in certain poems, but it does so in a way that is classy and musical. I read it in about 20 minutes because I couldn't put it down (Its only about 30 pages or so) and it left me begging for more. There were so many poems I loved; "Laugh," and "Just another D**n emotion" were of my favorites. I literally almost cried while reading them. There were times when I wanted to laugh or cry or just wanted to hug someone. This series of poems induced so many feelings in me that I wasn't quite sure which way was up once I finished. I loved it. I believe there is a poem in here for everyone despite it's male POV.
That being said, there were a few things I would have liked to see differently. First, some of the poems seemed like they needed more verse, or perhaps I was being greedy. Regardless, on 2 of the poems I had hoped there would be a bit more poem to go along with my feelings, but of course, there were plenty of other poems that fulfilled. Second, I would have also liked to see some different points of view. I like getting insight into the way a man's mind works but I would have loved to see if he could have carried his poetry over to the woman brain. At times, because I'm a woman, I couldn't really understand the feelings he was explaining and so I couldn't really connect. Third, I wish the entire book would have been focused on one category. Although most of it related to romance and dating, there were a few others that seemed more like self help. It changed my mood too much at times. An alternative would be to separate the poems by type. If, for example, the book were segmented by the categories romance, self help, inspirational, etc. I would have felt better. The issues I had with the book were quite minimal though and didn't take anything away from my overall love of it.
J Morgan knows poems. EISI made me want to tear up, tingle, laugh, cry, be consoled, console, and everything else imaginible. Even more than that, EISI awakened me to the uncertainty of love and passion. This would be the perfect book for an audiobook or author reading because you would be able to really feel the flow of the poems. I give it 4.5 stars, not because the author is my friend, but because this book is just
that amazing and thus, deserves it.
Okay, here come's the special treatment.... J Morgan's book will be available via Amazon's Kindle Edition
here on January 22. Buy it! It's only $2.95. If you're interested in reading more about J Morgan before you go and buy his book, check him out at his locations:
