The Holy Longing

Dandelion Arts Magazine

The Holy Longing is a debut collection from a powerful new voice. These confessional poems by Vera Graziadei celebrate the wonder and mystery of everyday experience, from the marvels of solitude and creativity, to the trials and joys of human relationships, to moments of spiritual reflection and enlightenment. The Holy Longing encourages readers to realise the momentous role that passion can play in our lives, as a source of inner strength, of healing, and of personal discovery.

Graziadei’s rich and evocative verse finds wisdom in love and sensuality, in pain and loss, and in the majesty of the natural world. Her lyrical poetry is intimate and universal, elegant and wild, sensual and visceral, brimming with energy and emotion. Graziadei’s restlessness and curiosity makes The Holy Longing a compelling and life affirming collection, recognising imaginative possibilities in the places we least expect to find them.

I really enjoyed this brief poetry book that provided not only emotional interest but had some great design in the book that kept us looking at words very differently.

The cover doesn’t quite match the inside personality of the book, but it’s a nice touch to the overall concept.

The voice was strong in the book and I definitely recommend others checking this out. It’s a nice contrast from other popular poetry books like Milk & Honey and I Wrote This Just For You.

by Meagan Loyd

The Holy Longing is a debut collection of new poems. I chose to read this book on National Poetry Day as I'd never read anything by Vera Graziadei before. I'm glad I did. These poems are lyrical and sensual.

by Sue Frances

The Holy Longing is a book of rich spiritual and philosophical depth. I recommend this book for considerate readers of verse.

by Reading Lit

The Holy Longing is a great collection of poems. The author paints images with words in such a beautiful way that each poem is like a short clip of images. I loved that in addition she puts great emphasis on the placement of the words on the pages. Each poem looks different and even though sometimes it’s harder to read them. In my opinion, the most special poems were the ones that were the hardest to read. I had to take it very slow and read each letter carefully. They stuck with me the most. It was a great experience to be able to read the book and I hope she will release more of her amazing art.

by Zsofia Kerenyi