Poetry doesn’t have to be out of your reach, like the classic ones by Keats, Milton, or Lord Byron. Rupi Kaur’s debut poetry book, Milk and Honey, uses imperfect rhymes and lyrical lines, all with an insightful look at sorrow, femininity, loss, love, and even abuse and violence, propelling it to bestselling status when it was published in 2014.
Since then, similar poetry collections using this more “modern” style have popped up everywhere, riding along the success of Milk and Honey to give readers a contemporary experience with poetry that’s more of a mix with prose.
Milk and Honey contains four chapters, with each chapter serving a different part in the process of healing through grief and pain.
11 Poetry Books Similar to Milk and Honey
If you liked Milk and Honey, we believe you might also enjoy the following books:
1. the sun and her flowers by rupi kaur
Clearly, if you loved Milk and Honey, you would most likely enjoy the author’s other works. She takes a similar stance with this book yby dividing it into five chapters along the following themes: wilting, falling, rooting, rising, and blooming. This collection includes more passages relating to family and the immigration experience.
2. Bone by Yrsa Daley-Ward
This book might be a little painful to read, as it deals with topics like desire, religion, and living as a woman. Take a closer look at love and vulnerability in the human experience through the poems in this book.
3. And Still I Rise by Maya Angelou
If you loved the themes on abuse and feminism, this inspirational poetry by Maya Angelou shoud be on your reading list! She was known as an integral part of the Civil Rights movement, having worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.
4. Fierce Fairytales by Nikita Gill
This poetic retelling of classic fairy tales proves an entertaining read, especially with the unusual twists that Nikita Gill puts into them! What if Cinderella’s stepmother had a good reason for being bitter and mean? What if Sleeping Beauty wasn’t really waiting for anyone to save her? Its female empowerment themes makes it greatly reminiscent of Milk and Honey.
5. the princess saves herself in this one by Amanda Lovelace
This poetry book emulates Milk and Honey a lot in terms of content, style, and even its cover. Perhaps that’s because it comes to us from the same publisher. Having been named Goodreads Poetry Choice Award for 2016, the poems in this book are aimed at slightly younger audiences.
6. Dispatch from the Future by Leigh Stein
Enjoy this beautiful collection of poems about love, life, and, believe it or not, the internet and even Greek mythology! But don’t think it’s a disconnected piece; the author has gracefully combined memoir with fiction and poetry in this excellent work.
7. She Must Be Mad by Charly Cox
If you’re a young woman trying to fit into the world as a healthy adult, this book is for you. This mix of poetry and prose expresses Cox’s experiences as she was growing up, dealing with the problem of body image, relationships, and even mental health, among others.
8. The Feeling May Remain by Akif Kichloo
Just like Milk and Honey, this collection of poems takes a look at both the beautiful and the horrible experiences in life. First comes despair, then loathing, then solitude—but what if the solitude becomes a place where wisdom springs forth, followed by growth and eventually, a whole new perpsective of life?
9. Sea of Strangers by Lang Leav
This poetry book explores the lasting impact that relationships have on our lives, usually months or even years past their rightful end. This makes it similar to Milk and Honey in dealing with topics of love and grief, making the pain of loss something that we experience with humanity at large.
10. I Hope This Reaches Her in Time by R.H. Sin
This collection about abuse and the pain it causes in relationships is full of powerfully-written poems that deal with the trauma that comes with love and vulnerability, as well as tackling the issue of overcoming the wounds.
11. Even this Page is White by Vivek Shraya
In this collection, the author delves into important issues of race and skin color, as well as exploring the limitations to not being white. Although we’ve seen lots of book talking about race, Shraya’s offers insight into the endless wondering of whether the conflicts are because of your skin color.
Enjoying Books Like Milk and Honey
Enjoying modern poetry books like Milk and Honey is a great way of gaining fresh perspective on life, love, and loss. Poetry can hit our hearts differently than prose, and sometimes it’s a good idea to mix up our reading list with some poetry collections.
Plus, these books help dispel the idea that poetry is all about sunshine and flowers; these honest takes on the pain of life and love can help anyone struggling through them feel understood, so feel free to gift them to your friends.
Did you find this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below!
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Yen Cabag is the Blog Writer of TCK Publishing. She is also a homeschooling mom, family coach, and speaker for the Charlotte Mason method, an educational philosophy that places great emphasis on classic literature and the masterpieces in art and music. She has also written several books, both fiction and nonfiction. Her passion is to see the next generation of children become lovers of reading and learning in the midst of short attention spans.
