Poet Katheryn Louise gifted me a special prelaunch copy of her beautiful collection Yet Still, She Shines. The anticipated release date is January 24, 2024, and I urge you to secure yourself a copy of this beautiful collection. Kathryn Louise’s Yet Still, She Shines is a masterpiece of imagery and emotion. She opens with a brilliant burst of summer, showering readers with color and heat. Dragonflies carry messages of hope to those willing to listen, love’s heat sears the heart as a midnight breeze caresses the cheeks, lovers find wholeness in each other’s strength. She contemplates forever, “Let’s read this next chapter slowly,” she suggests, so as not to waste a single honey-drenched moment. She reminds us that “without sorrow, nothing tastes sweet.” She leads her readers into the liminal spaces, “The space between what was / and what will be: / a beautiful place of calm, / of leaning in and listening, / of imagination and planning, / of surrendering/ and allowing.” Kathryn Louise brings light into “the darkest of places, the tiniest of spaces;” helping us to see that true love exists, and comes when we least expect it.

Kathryn Louise invites readers to recall the unfettered joy of childhood nonsense; she asks them to feel the rhythm of the waves, and reminds us all to cherish each fleeting moment of our lives, the winter sunsets, coffee drunk on the porch overlooking spring blossoms, to stay present and live now. Her words illustrate life, togetherness, the highs and hurts of love, and the pain of loss. You look into shadows and see the light on the other side, and you are awakened. She crafts such exquisite lines: “Just walk by my side / as we tackle / each little pain / from the past, / for we are but / mirrors for each other–“
Yet Still, She Shines is a truly beautiful collection of poetry, elegant in its simplicity and expression. I feel certain that this volume will be a meaningful addition to people’s poetry shelves.