My Love Sent Me a List

“My Love Sent Me a List” is a contemporary sonnet written by the Ukrainian American poet Olena Kalytiak Davis. Published in her 2014 book The Poem SheDidn’t Write and Other Poems, the poem draws heavily from the work of English poet William Shakespeare, though Davis subverts some well-known Shakespearean forms, tropes, and characters to create a distinctively modern confessional, comedic, feminist love poem. It’s not just the form of the poem that's modern; the message is too. The poem presents an honest look at the nastier side of love—a side defined by spite, self-consciousness, scorn, and jealousy. But Davis presents these negative things with a light touch, choosing to focus on self-deprecation to create self-empowerment. The poem was included in Davis’s most well-known poetry collection, and it serves as a prime example ofher straightforward and honest lyrical style.

Poet Biography

While the literary community knows Davis as a poet, she makes her living as a lawyer. Born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1963, Davis is a first-generation Ukrainian American. She earned her law degree from the University of Michigan and her Master of Fine Arts from Vermont College.

While Davis’s reputation as a poet is strong, her output is minimal.