These Are the Words: Fearless Verse to Find Your Voice
Nikita Gill
Macmillan, August 2022
Paperback £7.99
ISBN 9781529083606
Focusing on themes of girlhood, feminism, and adolescence, These Are the Words is a poetry collection that feels like being let in on a secret. It is separated into four distinct sections based on the astrological signs in every season and discusses everything the world doesn’t tell you about the truths, triumphs, and struggles of being a teenage girl.
Throughout the book, Gill places herself as the metaphorical older sibling of each reader, offering advice and wisdom to the younger generation. As a result, there is an almost overbearing sense of familiarity in Gill’s words, one that makes the collection feel like a warm hug on a cold winter day. In each section, she gives voice to the realities of first love, heartbreak, friendship, and family, and provides insight into how to cope with these often mercurial aspects of life.
Gill also validates the anger and outrage that comes along with being a girl today, noting how teenage girls are often exploited, undermined, or disempowered in a patriarchal society. To remedy these feelings, she encourages readers to become active agents, to know their worth, and to strive towards being their truest selves.
However, this collection does not come without its fair share of heavier topics, such as homophobia, racism, misogyny, body image issues, mental health issues, and trauma. Though readers should take care when consuming this collection, these issues are handled with great sensitivity and respect. Furthermore, though the collection targets the female experience, the messages within its pages are not limited to them and would resonate with anyone who stands on the precipice of adulthood.
Aoife Connolly
The only slight issue I found was the excessive amount of characters that were hard to keep track of, as I felt this took away from the development of other major characters, such as Detective Cafferty and Jared. However, this issue was easily overcome by brilliant character development of the main character Mina, adding quite a thrill to the novel, as I felt a sense of connection and relatability to her.
Harris’s story is bursting with colour – his own, and the psychology of what a favourite colour means. Bright and witty, this is a sweet novel with a very readable style. Through Harris, we learn the struggles of everyday life with a wheelchair. Informative, while effortlessly enjoyable. It opens a new perspective on how we view others, and the assumptions that we can make. Harris’s relationship with Nory unfolded beautifully, and Zander’s loyalty to their friendship left me smiling for ages.
Princess of Souls is incredibly fast-paced and hard to put down. There isn’t a lot of time to ponder on the meaning of the Festival of Predictions or breathe in this world before the status quo is overturned. Personally, I prefer when fantasy novels give me a stronger and lengthier introduction to the world before the main events begin. However, this could be better for younger readers to maintain attention and is definitely made up for later in the story.
The sections on taking care of your mental health and coping with all the stressful experiences were lovely to see and there are further resources at the back of the book. I do wish that the chapter on trans people was a little longer and included more trans voices and perspectives, but I understand the limitations that come with writing a book as broad as this.
As the pages do not include dates, this journal can be used at any time of the year, in no particular order. An attractive hardback, it makes a gorgeous gift for a friend or relative, or anyone looking to treat themselves. 
