There are disturbing references to incest, from which one can infer that the writer experienced sexual trauma at the hands of family members, including her own father. Most of the poems in this section are written in the first person after reading several of the poems, it becomes obvious that the speaker of the poem is inhabiting the female experience, discussing the trials and tribulations of growing up as a woman and especially the pain of being sexually abused from a young age. The first section of the book, “The Hurting,” focuses on the experience of pain, specifically concerning interpersonal relationships between men and women. Along with the text, some poems have an ink drawing done by Kaur. The collection is divided into four sections: “The Hurting,” “The Loving,” “The Breaking,” and “The Healing.” Most of the poems in the collection are relatively short, consisting of a page of text or less. It is thought to have had such a wide-reaching impact because of its universal relatability on the subject of women’s issues.

The book’s title is a biblical reference, to Exodus 33:3 and God’s promise to lead the Israelites to a land of milk and honey. It made it onto the New York Times Bestseller list and sold more than 2.5 million copies worldwide. Self-published in 2014, the book is the author’s first release and was met with critical acclaim. Milk and Honey is a collection consisting of both poetry and prose by Indian-born Canadian poet Rupi Kaur.

Milk and honey rupi