“Notes on the Train” by Loreen de Kort

Notes on the Train

Loreen de Kort
Independently Published (2021)
ISBN: 9780578885018
Reviewed by Verna Coy for Reader Views (08/2021)

“Notes on the Train” by Loreen de Kort is a book of contemporary sonnets describing the author’s inner struggle with depression and the ups and downs in life. Written in the form of notes while riding on a train, this book takes the reader on a journey in more ways than one. The sense of travel pervades the script and sets a tone for reaching one’s goal in the end, keeping readers turning the pages for the next revelation.

As I read this author’s thoughts, I found that the descriptions of the internal struggles and hesitancy brought the book into a realm of healing and admittance of one’s vulnerability that seems quite effective for the mood and message of the book overall. The mention of the inner child that stays protected behind the outer facade is an example with which many people will identify.

I was impressed by the depth of feeling in much of this poetry. It reveals many secret thoughts and hopes in the poet that echo in so many of us as people. The author uses different writing styles in each poem, and it’s an intense progression of emotion as one reads through them. These elements bring out the author’s character development and add more dimension to the book as a whole.

I enjoyed the connections with words and their meanings that elucidated and brought these works to life. One of the poems lists the dolls in storage, each with a different name representing a particular aspect of the author’s insight or personality. It was significant when the doll that kept the author’s piece of sorrow was named Nell.

What I liked most about his book is how each poem made me see things from a new perspective. I loved the poem about what the author’s grandfather left her. The beautiful memories of childhood that become treasures to be passed down to new generations were sweet and loving and full of the kind of emotions that lovers of poetry hope to find in a volume in this genre.

This book is exceptionally edited, although I found that the habit of foregoing capitalization at the beginning of lines where punctuation was used was disconcerting without affecting the book’s flow. I am, therefore, rating this book with 5 out of 5 stars. I recommend it to fans of poetry. This slim volume will entertain and enlighten with its many moods and shades of emotion.