“yesterday i was the moon” is Tomorrow’s Bestseller

Acceptance, courage, self-love and culture are just a few of the topics Noor Unnahar discusses in her book of poetry, “yesterday i was the moon,” which was just released as a second edition on March 27.

While this is the first book 20-year-old Unnahar has published, she’s no stranger to the public eye. She gained popularity by sharing her poetry on Instagram and Pinterest, and also runs a blog and YouTube channel where she shares about her art and Pakistani lifestyle.

Unnahar regularly posts pictures on social media of her art journals, in which she combines her poems with collage style art. The mixed mediums and textures are eye catching and creatively illustrate the striking topics she expresses through her poetry.

This passion for art and design is evident in “yesterday i was the moon,” which includes illustrations hand drawn by Unnahar herself for select poems.

The entire book is full of subtle choices that have a bold impact. All of the poems are fairly short, so instead of filling the pages with a larger font, the book draws attention to the poems by utilizing the white space. A 12-word poem typed in point 12 size font in the middle of a blank page just demands to be read. There’s nothing else to distract the reader’s eyes.

The page size varies in width just slightly enough to create a rough, staggered edge when the book is closed. This unique touch not only adds to the “art journal” vibe that the book already gives off, but it forces the reader to slow down. The unevenness of the pages prevents readers from absent-mindedly flipping through it; instead, they need to take the book a page at a time.

Multiple elements of the book, including the hand drawn graphics, short poem length and the stylistic choice of using no capital letters, is reminiscent of poetry by Rupi Kaur.

Kaur is an Indian-Canadian poet who has written two books of poetry: “milk and honey” published in 2015 and “the sun and her flowers” published in 2017. Both books regularly fly off shelves and top bestseller charts.

The poems that both young writers produce are simple, brief and loaded with universal truths. While Unnahar writes about some personal subjects, such as the meaning of her name or the hijab that she wears, they connect to the larger topic of identity and self-discovery, which can be understood and felt by any reader.

In a time when politics and prejudice act as a divisive wedge between people, Unnahar encourages readers to rebuild from their wreckage, reminds them that home is much more than just a house and leaves them with a simple command: be kind for this is something a lot of people can never be.

Elizabeth Olson

Arts & Entertainment Editor

eolso148@uwsp.edu