A review of A Jarful of Moonlight by Nazanin Mirsadeghi

Reviewed by Lorraine Currelley

A Jarful of Moonlight
by Nazanin Mirsadeghi
Edited by Michael Loveday
Bahar Books
Paperback: 68 Pages, ISBN-13:978-1-939099-62-4

A Jarful of Moonlight by Nazanin Mirsadeghi is an impressive short collection of poems. Mirsadeghi’s poems resonated with this reader. All poems are reflective of universal human experiences. The poems are short and uncomplicated. Mirsadeghi shares poems on self and eros love, friendship, sadness, longing, pain, heartbreak, and healing. Some of the poems are heart wrenching. I heard a desperate plea for love’s understanding and reciprocity. The reader is invited to share in this heartache and sadness. Readers will not have to struggle to connect with the author’s meaning, it’s laid out on the table from the beginning.

There are things I loved about A Jarful of Moonlight and one thing I found confusing.
There were times I did not know when a poem ended and another one started. This
did not distract from the poem in question. What makes this a strong collection is the author’s voice and honesty. The collection does not pretend to be something it is not. Poems flow easily and the author speaks with a welcomed unpretentiousness, honesty and transparency:

do you remember
the you and I
in the faded picture
hanging on the wall?

we were free

we fell asleep
in the warm blanket
of each other’s arms
and shared our meal
on the only plate we owned
life was simple
and we were rich

do you remember?

we use to break bread
with each other
now we break each other

I want to stretch my arms
and grow tall and green
covered with leaves
and sleeping buds
I want to bloom

you want me to stay
the way I am
a hopeless seed
under the soil
buried alive

Readers will enjoy and leave having connected with this collection’s author.

About the reviewer: Lorraine Currelley, poet, writer, storyteller, multimedia artist, mental health and grief and bereavement counselor. She advocates for mental health and healthy aging. She’s the founder/executive director, Poets Network & Exchange, Inc., where she facilitates poetry and creative writing workshops, produces featured poetry readings, panel discussions and a scholar lecture series. She’s widely anthologized and the recipient of numerous honors. She’s the newly elected executive director for the Bronx Book Fair. She resides in New York City. https://poetsnetworkandexchange.com