shadow.self.

By: Joe Arden

Narrated by: Joe Arden

Length: 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Herein lies a raw exploration of duality, darkness, and desire. A collection of sonnets, haikus, and free verse that brings to the surface our fractured pieces and celebrates how the light and the dark blend to make us whole. An invitation to embrace the shadow and give it its rightful place as a part of the self.

Internationally celebrated voice actor and author, Joe Arden, opens his mind and heart in this scintillating outpouring of original poetry. Arden’s work bleeds from the page in the same emotionally-charged fashion as his lyrical performances of the countless love stories he’s told throughout his career.

The power you’ve hidden underneath glows,

Who told you to bury your beautiful?

Every scar tells me what your body knows.

Your presence to me is immutable.

©2024 Joe Arden (P)2024 Blue Nose Publishing

Reflection, refraction; our shadow.self reimagined

This collection of work is a portrait of the shadow that exists within us all…whether we go in search of it or not. The idea of feeling seen within the depths of personal reflection by oneself is sometimes too profound to understand. Joe leans into his ability to express, in both the written and spoken form through shadow.self, what any one person can discover tangled in their own minds OR within shades of their own morality at any given time.

I appreciated the haikus and the whimsy of pieces like “Ode to a Raindrop” (one of my personal favorites) and “Do You See That Bug”. Even more so, the sweetness of “Honeysuckle” (this felt like a sensory knockout) and “Feathery Kisses” are love notes to the soul. Perhaps most potent, and visceral is the portrait Joe paints of a shadowed figure in shades streaked with grey. Tracks titled “The Lost Sonnet”, “Key to My Jail Cell” and “If There’s Anything” have a finality that is bone chilling.

And if sonnets could be songs they would be titled “Of Time” and “House Fortified”.

I’m in awe of Joe’s ability to explore the corners of his mind and express his workings into this creation with a precision that blurs the line of fiction and reality. What parts of us do we allow ourselves to see?

That’s between my shadow and me.

Masterpiece at it's finest

I'm still reeling from the emotional rollercoaster that was Joe's poetry collection. Every piece was a masterpiece, leaving me amazed, inspired, and deeply moved. I never thought I'd connect so strongly with poetry, but his words have truly resonated with me.

Raw, hauntingly beautiful, yet hopeful.

This one took a minute because how do you review someone's emotions? How do you review someone's bared soul?

shadow. self. was raw, hauntingly beautiful, hopeful...

The emotions are tangible from start to finish, not just in the actual poetry but in the dedication, the epigraphs, the introduction, you can feel the sentiment. The weight of the words.

I think Joe described it best in the introduction when he says that art should make you feel unalone. In shadow. self. I felt that hand reaching out so many times, reminding me in grief, in joy, in fear, in ecstasy I'm not alone. None of us are.


If you're a human who has ever felt anything, this is me, recommending you shadow. self.

Vibrant Sonnets

Not sure what I was expecting, but truly loved the introduction, it was quite moving, as well as ending remarks. I also appreciated that Joe acknowledged Carl Jung since the title (Shadow.Self), reflects the psychologist's philosophy. I particularly like sonnet #16 "The absence of silent is not quiet" and overall creativity, and humility. Joe Arden truly holds his mom dear, one of the things I admire about him. It's seems his mother is always close to his heart