Candy Cigarette Womanchild Noir by Kristin Garth

Candy Cigarette Womanchild Noir Reviews

• 
  Paige Johnson

  Crush your womanchildish cravings before her second novel, The Meadow. Here we have about 90pgs (so her biggest collection?) of wool sock soft kink w/ cool titles cutting through the middle of some poems. Pretty (&) creative w/ southern gothic catholic school sexiness. The lust to be more to somebody and in general is scalding. From terminally shy cheerleaders to stripping sex kittens. In love w/ “Pom-poms under neon lights,” Barbie Dream Houses purchased by means Princess Nikki Minaj would applaud. The poem Broken Little Girls is so Lana Del Rey: runaway pickup trucks, baby talk to an unrequited love, platforms and slinky slip-dresses.
  
  Of course a piece called Stripping on 9/11 is memorable but for extra reasons: I’m always amazed how little sex workers speak of physical insecurities so it’s nice to see the extra candor, to know the performers aren’t all confidence and have tricks for cutting a better shape. Informative about gentleman’s club laws: certain counties fine for nip slips so you can wear clear pasties as a loophole, and pube length matters in appearing “decent” enough. There are poems about broomstick porn, “daydream pristine, “Ruby-clawed outlaw” are other good lines.
  
  Perverted teachers, electric chairs, and coloring book menus serving tears. Schoolyard insults that stick about peep-toes as well as a dentist’s off-color remark. I really like the concept of sleeping w/ someone in a half built house, sawdust and shadows all over the dangerous floor. Very interesting to hear a drug dealer mentioned and the inversion of church service. Def seeing some southern Gothic influences w/ covering your trails in the woods and assault. “Good Girl Gone” is great at a base, relatable anger where you go to do something nice for someone and discovering they’re doing the opposite. Buying dolls after lap dances, sensual writing even about reading “Henry Miller in my bed.”
• 
  J.D. Estrada

  For me, the best poets are the ones who leave everything on the page. Kristin Garth is this type of poet and the honesty in her craft is something to behold, as well as her extremely talented use of language to create sonnets covering such diverse topics such as sexuality, abuse, survival, perceptions of society, murder, lust, desire, vulnerability, and countless noir explorations.
  
  Like the best poets she takes what she's lived through and channels it deeply and honestly to craft something unique, genuine, profound, powerful, disarming, and empowering all at the same time.
  
  I also had the privilege of reading this title with annotations from the author and I cannot recommend that enough. Reading something haunting is one thing, getting the backstory to it shows how powerful writing can be. Cue quite a few trigger warnings though if you're feeling adventurous, I can't recommend this collection enough. Yet another entry in the elite level of poetry though not for the faint of heart.
• 
  Preston Smith

  Kristin Garth's latest book, "Candy Cigarette Womanchild Noir," follows prior works—such as "Pink Plastic House" in that the book is divided into sections (Peeler, Chinatown, Pins, Private Dick, Dolls, and Invisible Ink)—but it stands stoically on its own, creating through each poem connective tissues that bind into a memoir that is simultaneously beautifully written and heartbreaking. Garth exposes patriarchal views of women, sex, and sex work and nods a hat to Stormy Daniels in these pages, and every word captivates. Where the emotions are real and felt in every poem, Garth's descriptions sneak up on you and immerse you into her world before you even realize what has happened. Garth is endlessly talented, and "Candy Cigarette Womanchild Noir" is a book that should be a staple in today's climate. It's personal and progressive, but even more importantly, it exudes sheer ability that cannot be argued or diminished.
• 
  Harley Claes

  Kristin Garth's work is a confessional, a barbed wire brawl taking back her experience with the power of words. Lyrical and full of juxtapositions each piece is a danse macabre- reading Candy Cigarette Womanchild Noir is seeing her life through a broken kaleidoscope lens- illuminating the wound but reclaiming the expression. With language steeped in a sticky candy focus her life is made vivid and saturated through aesthetic association and a reeling of adjectives to define dirty verbs with a sensuous defense. Each poem is heavy illustrating a scene, a situation through a dismantled and dipped in paint narrative, a coaxing, a carriage carried by criminals. A real unapologetic uncensored description of what it is like to be a woman n a world where men take and take and take, unashamed of their traumatic footprint in an impressionable lifeline.
• 
  Rob

  Top quality poetry, deep, meaningful and powerful. You not only read between the lines, an hologram of thoughts and feelings surface and, challenges perceptions. A brave and heroic personal insight into the poets dark past, each time you read the poems the more powerful they become. Respect to the poet for embarking on a very personal and taboo subject.
• 
  Miss December

  Exceptional work from the Sonnet Queen. Kristin Garth does not disappoint, and this book is a must have. I was so excited when I found out she released a "full" book and her collection is fantastic. This is a must have, I cannot say that enough. Fans of sonnets, pop culture, poetry, noir, candy, dolls, etc. this is the book for you.
• 
  Nick Stika

  An interesting, enlightening, and sometimes dark glimpse into a different world. Kristin Garth has drawn from life experience to create this poetic look through a window, to a world foreign to most.
• 
  Elizabeth Aldrich

  ‪I think it was @nicetryofficer who turned me on to @lolaandjolie. It was my birthday and I was having a blast reading her poetry and bought some of her books. Hello Kitty sheets and black lipstick pouts. Her aura is cotton candy and her poems are like knives. ‬
  
  ‪I love her writing because there is nowhere she is scared to go.‬
  
  
• 
  Chloe

  This book is an intimate, vulnerable but simultaneously powerful collection of poetry. We are invited to gaze, unashamedly, at our bare chested author as she shows us her body and her soul. A story of trauma, healing & reclamation of sexuality which is at times both exciting and painful to read, but ultimately uplifting. A really beautiful book that demonstrates the brilliance and resilience of womankind.