Reviews
BookLife from Publisher's Weekly:
“Sometimes funny, sometimes gutting, and always beautiful, Strazza’s poems inspire readers to contemplate the importance of words as vehicles for empathy. Readers and music fans will love this poignant collection of masterfully written poems.”
Read the full Lyrical review here.​
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From Lyrical fans across the world:
"This book... I don’t know if any words that I write could even be worthy of describing such a complete masterpiece. The depth, reality, and rawness of his poetry is like none that I’ve read before. I have never experienced an artist that could evoke such a strong emotional response with, at many times, so few words. This is the kind of book that will remain a constant...something you will reach to over and over again finding a new feeling or meaning in lines you’ve read for the 5th time...yet somehow, always feels like the first time again and again. Absolutely brilliant."
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"This book has raw power, truth, and a story of sadness that goes straight to the heart. Even though I wanted to stop and ponder certain poems, I had to keep reading. And every poem took me further into this man's life story. Remarkable."
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"From the moment I began reading James’s poetry, I was hooked. His raw and real expression behind his words is not only relatable, but felt. His ability to maneuver through both the heart provoking and heartfelt, as well as the clever and straight to the point, shows his incredible talent for writing. You won’t be disappointed!"
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"Brilliant, beautiful, and heartbreaking. James Strazza captures so many thoughts and feelings so eloquently, cleverly, and concisely. While also not taking himself too seriously.
I hope the window he opens into the world of severe ME/CFS, where so many are trapped, will help mobilize people to cure this horribly neglected disease."
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"Never has a writer said so much in so few words. I’m a huge poetry fan but honestly no poet has ever moved me as much as this one. Every page I think I’ve found a new favourite poem, that’s the kind of book you treasure. I’m so glad he shares his talent with the world."
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“… In this profound, powerful, and passionate collection of poems, James Strazza draws the candle of his soul into the darkness of a dread, unspeakable disease called Myalgic Encephalomyelitis. And yet he speaks. This poet—and he is a poet in the fullest sense—gives utterance to a horrific reality that escapes all utterance. Transforming us into witnesses, he ignites our own soul: to read James Strazza is to burn with him. And to be forever transformed.”
David Patterson
Professor and Hillel A. Feinberg Distinguished Chair in Holocaust Studies., University of Texas at Dallas
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“These poems are not about pain. They are pain, transformed into words. Without melodramatic, unnecessary embellishments."
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​Grzegorz Kwiatkowski
Yale Artist in Residence, poet, musician, activist, scholar
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​"Some books we read entertain us. Some books we read educate us. Some books we read inspire us. And, rarely, we read a book that captivates us, leaving such a deep imprint that it becomes a part of us. Unsung is among these rarest of books that I have been fortunate enough to encounter throughout a lifetime of reading.”
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Philip Barber
PhD candidate in Literature, MA in Humanities, MA in Theology, former English teacher at Grand Prairie ISD and former Rhetoric Instructor at The University of Texas at Dallas (medically retired)
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“Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) robs its victims of so much, but James is defying the theft with the power of words in his collection Unsung. The result of whispers into his phone, Unsung captures the pain, loneliness, and sometimes hopelessness without denying memories of James’ previous life (yesterdays) and pain of his current existence. The poetry is bittersweet—the beauty of effective art through words, the celebration of existence and “little things” (like clean hands—that one got me!), but the pain of this disabling disease and the darkness it brings. I could not put Unsung down once I started reading, even though I was reminded: 'of the fragility of life and its potential for suffering.' What a collection."
Carie S. Tucker King
Clinical Professor
Director of Rhetoric
Managing Editor of Publications, Sigma Tau Delta
The University of Texas at Dallas