Reader Views’ Book Review on Scatter Seeds of Kindness

Scatter Seeds of Kindness
K.A. Bloch
Balboa Press (2021)
ISBN: 978-1982275426
Reviewed by Amy Lignor for Reader Views 

I’m saying this from the heart, fellow readers. In a time where I am constantly reviewing books about predators, serial killers, and some other god-awful monster out there, a book like “Scatter Seeds of Kindness” comes as a true blessing. Not only is this author, K.A. Bloch, very talented at writing poetry that holds within each stanza all the emotions a person can feel (and, yes, this includes light, happiness, kindness, and love), Bloch also doesn’t center on one subject. In fact, this collection looks into a variety of subjects some that are truly bothering us in this day and age, and others that remind us, no matter how difficult something may be, there is a way to have fun and be lighthearted simply by reading these words.

Opening with a “message” to the people who were bright enough to purchase this book, Bloch talks about her own journey through poetry and how this career path came to be. She touches upon her first book, “Walk Through a Field of Flowers,” and talks about how she actually began writing when she was only a young girl, just starting out in life. She opens up her own past to readers by talking about her father’s laughter when she was just a kid and read a poem to him about a cute little mouse; and how her mother would listen to her words as she sat at the kitchen table doing her nails, using hand gestures to slow the little girl down when she recited her latest creation just a little too fast.

With this latest compilation, K.A. tells everyone about how memories, the passage of time, and how even stereotypes that our world cannot get rid of still affect our lives on a daily basis. She wishes for us to learn, laugh, think, smile, and…perhaps even more importantly, understand how to practice “kindness” on those days and towards those people that make being kind difficult.

I am a huge fan of many of the poems in this book; I will never forget one called “Stereotypes (a.k.a. Crazy Cat Lady).” And “The Bully” actually made me feel like the author was my own sister because we agreed so much on the topic. A great addition is that with some of the poems, she also added in a paragraph or two of her own feelings. As an example, after “The Bully,” she talked about how this was a true story in her life, but that she’ll never “tell” who the bully actually was in order to protect his innocence. She talks about the power of karma and what it really has to do with things; and she speaks out for those targeted who do not deserve to be teased and taunted, even if the bully is experiencing his own tragedies in life. It becomes interesting and unique because she sees it from both points of view.

Another great one is titled, “Cowboy Boots and Blue Jeans,” and had me looking at the
differences between a Porsche and a pickup truck in a whole new light. (LOL) From “Time Spent with Friends” to talking about her first diary that her parents gave to her which, I assume, could be shut tight by a brightly polished silver lock, and only opened with a matching silver key–I had an absolute ball learning more and more about this poet’s life.

For those who love poetry, get this immediately. For those who don’t tend to read poems…get this immediately. In a world where we’re weary from turning on the TV and listening to more and more pandemic information, school shootings, tornadoes destroying both people and towns—you name it—this is a book that will bring a smile to your face! God knows…we need that. “5-Stars!”