Mary L. Montalvo's Heart of the Hummingbird opens a soul that endured the depths of depression and conquered adversities when all rays of hope faded into dark shadows. The poems in this collection reflect the cruel and inhumane treatment that Montalvo suffered in several mental institutions. Her professional and personal lives were abruptly turned upside down when mental illness struck. But by the grace of God, she returned to her faith, family, and friends and was brought back to a new life. Moving through this stirring work, readers will soar through the heights and explore emotions of the abyss. Each of us lives the life that is our own whether we like it or not, whether we crave it or curse it, and Montalvo recounts the most painful parts of the journey by using poetry as a necessary shelter. Heart of the Hummingbird evokes strife, tribulation, happiness, and sadness; Montalvo's soul flutters as it is imbued in each of these poems, like the heart of the hummingbird.