I read Tracy Smith's Life On Mars earlier this year and was totally blow away. So I got my hands on her newest collection as quickly as I could. It was, if anything, better than I'd hoped. Smith's language is so sharp and precise. She writes the kind of poems I could read over and... Continue Reading →
It took me forty-four days to finish this book, which maybe says something about how much I was connecting with it. It was good--don't get me wrong--but it didn't cut me open the way some more recent books of poetry have (A Place Called No Homeland, Don't Call Us Dead). Audre Lorde is a feminist... Continue Reading →
Machi Tawara was only twenty-six when Salad Anniversary was published. It was an instant bestseller in Japan, and eventually became one of the bestselling books in the country's history. It was also critically acclaimed, and one of the poem sequences in the book, "August Morning", won the prestigious Kadokawa Tanka Prize. So there's an interesting... Continue Reading →
I've been sitting on this review for a few days, mostly because, in the end, I think there is little I can say other than: go read this book of poems. I want to quote every line, but I also want you to know that each line, each poem, though glittering and sharp and gorgeous,... Continue Reading →
Welcome to my newest weekly feature, Fuel for the Fire, where, every Monday, I'll post a passage from a book I've read recently that has moved, challenged, inspired, or humbled me. I'm currently reading Kai Cheng Thom's debut poetry collection, A Place Called No Homeland, and I could quote every one of her poems here,... Continue Reading →
Langston Hughes was only twenty-four when this collection of poetry was published. This is astounding to me, that, as such a young man, he wrote poems of such grace, depth, and, perhaps most striking—originality. Like Whitman before him, he seems to be recreating poetry on the page, imbuing his words with soulfulness. He balances a... Continue Reading →
Book Open 