Tomorrow Is Beautiful
Sarah Crossan (ed.)
Bloomsbury YA, September 2021
Hardback, €18.20
ISBN 9781526641892
Tomorrow Is Beautiful is a collection of poetry from the last 200 plus years, by authors of many different backgrounds. The common theme across the poems is hope: hope for the future, hope in the present, hope after a break-up or in grief or fear, the very nature of hope.
The poems are wonderful and fully deliver on the promise of conveying hope. Whether quiet contemplations or rallies to make a change (to the world, to yourself), there is a distinct presence in the tone throughout the collection. Each poem is very clear in its imagery, and if not necessarily easy to follow, easy to feel. They are given lots of space on the page to allow the reader to focus and remain in the poem’s moment.
In her introduction, Crossan states that “poetry belongs to us all”, and the book is particularly aimed at readers who would not otherwise think poetry was for them. Crossan has provided light commentary before most poems: suggested interpretations, author bios, even personal anecdotes. These make the reading experience feel less isolated, gently guided without anything getting over-explained. I did, however, find the occasional footnotes (actually, more so the stars indicating them within the poems) a bit distracting.
The collection is an enjoyable read cover to cover, but I think Tomorrow Is Beautiful is particularly well-suited to be the kind of book you can reach for when you do feel down. Open at a random page, read a couple of poems, and find one that speaks to and comforts you.
Camille Boelt Hindsgaul
