Poems You Will Love
by Sharon Dorival and Huguette St.Hilaire

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May you paint a portrait of who you see Or write some words of what you hear. Do not allow yourself to be judged by the thoughts in your head, Nor hang on your walls slanted biases. This collection of free verse poetry explores the versatile expression of the arts. Its depth, richness, colour, and style reach out to everyone trying to preserve culture and art and who wants to present their style to the world. Today's young adults are trying to achieve change on a different level—this book guides that transformation. Poems You’ll Love are divided into themes, allowing readers to first dig into the topics that capture their attention. The simplicity of the collection’s structure also encourages readers to create their interpretations of the poems and to try their hand at the art of writing poetry. This collection was inspired by the themes and prompts assigned by the Passion of Poetry team as part of their twenty-four-hour challenges. Many poems were judged by professional judges, teachers, doctors, social workers, and others. One set of poems written during a twenty-one-day streak even won the Emily Dickinson Award.

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Sharon Dorival and Huguette St. Hilaire are poets and collaborators. Their work has won several awards, including the Golden Drum Award (Huguette) and the Emily Dickinson Award (Sharon). They are passionate about the arts, dancing, creating things, teaching, and poetry. Huguette is a writer, musician, and music teacher. Her plays and short stories have been produced locally in Dominica, and she is an adjudicator for several cultural and Calypso shows. She is a songwriter, arranger, and the tutor of the music program at the Dominica Institute for the Arts. Although this is Huguette’s first book, she has two poems published in Mother’s Embrace (2022). In her free time, Huguette farms, bakes, drives, sell herbs and teas, and helps at her local Cultural Division. Huguette lives in Dominica with her husband and their dog, Rex. Sharon is a prolific writer and avid reader. She has published a dozen books, including Tricks on the Mind (2019), Martha Dreams (2019), Monkey Mind Madness (2020), and Where Are You Mom? (2022). She is a member of the Dominica Arts and Literary Association, Sistahs With Ink, Passion of Poetry, and Creation and Beyond, among others. Outside of writing, Sharon exercises at the outdoor gym, reads, spends time with older adults, and makes traditional rugs with empty rice bags and pieces of cloth. Sharon lives in Canada with her husband, three children, and their dog, Cuante.

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Contributors

Author

Sharon Dorival

Author

Huguette St.Hilaire

Illustrator

Kaihil Charles