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lisamlane's review against another edition
5.0
Simply brilliant poetry, spoke to me through the plain language and themes of love and the end of life.
planetclaire's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
lichenbitten's review against another edition
3.0
everything here
seems to need us
Rainer Maria Rilke
I can hardly imagine it
as I walk to the lighthouse, feeling the ancient
prayer of my arms swinging
in counterpoint to my feet.
Here I am, suspended
between the sidewalk and the twilight,
the sky dimming so fast it seems alive.
What if you felt the invisible
tug between you and everything?
A boy on a bicycle rides by,
his white shirt open, flaring
behind him like wings.
It's a hard time to be human. We know too much
and too little. Does the breeze need us?
The cliffs? The gulls?
If you've managed to do one good thing,
the ocean doesn't care.
But when Newton's apple fell toward the earth,
the earth, ever so slightly, fell
toward the apple."
-- "The World Has Need of You"
seems to need us
Rainer Maria Rilke
I can hardly imagine it
as I walk to the lighthouse, feeling the ancient
prayer of my arms swinging
in counterpoint to my feet.
Here I am, suspended
between the sidewalk and the twilight,
the sky dimming so fast it seems alive.
What if you felt the invisible
tug between you and everything?
A boy on a bicycle rides by,
his white shirt open, flaring
behind him like wings.
It's a hard time to be human. We know too much
and too little. Does the breeze need us?
The cliffs? The gulls?
If you've managed to do one good thing,
the ocean doesn't care.
But when Newton's apple fell toward the earth,
the earth, ever so slightly, fell
toward the apple."
-- "The World Has Need of You"
senid's review against another edition
5.0
I love these poems. The world, life, and a bit of introspection. Tasty morsels on a day I am feeling hungry.
piccoline's review against another edition
5.0
Another wonderful collection.
Favorites include:
Flies
Moonlight
Ode to the Fish
The World Has Need of You
Walking by Circle Market Late at Night
When You Return
Favorites include:
Flies
Moonlight
Ode to the Fish
The World Has Need of You
Walking by Circle Market Late at Night
When You Return
darrin's review
5.0
This is the book I bought after hearing Ellen Bass and Kevin Young read at the local Grand Valley State University Fall Arts Celebration event which took place on October 3. It was a good purchase and I am glad I own it as I will be going back and dipping into it again and again.
I love her poetry. For me it is very personal and warm and human. I realize that the persona in a poem is not necessarily the author but much of Bass's poetry seems like snippets from her own life or experiences.
Looking through the reviews a lot of people seem to concur with me and I also noticed quotes from a number of the same poems I like. But there were plenty of other poems in this collection that are, perhaps, less talked about but also resonated with me because of my own experiences.
The Last Week
I thought she would want to save me
from it, the stench and the shame,
but in the last week of dying,
my mother let me change her diaper,
let me wipe her with a warm, wet cloth
and slide the sheet under her hips,
the flesh softening, bones widening,
gravity pulling her back to earth like fallen fruit.
I need to say how precise she was.
She had a rage for order, my mother.
In the store she wrapped half-pints of cheap gin
with the same care she gave to Chivas Regal.
She smoothed the glossy holiday paper,
folding the torn edge under, sharpening
the crease with her thumbnail,
tucking the ends into a humble origami.
I thought she'd cling to her dignity
but she seemed to forgive her body,
all its chaos and collapse,
or maybe it was a final ripening of trust or love, abandon.
I'm not sure what to call it.
I like the lines,
."the flesh softening, bones widening,
gravity pulling her back to earth like fallen fruit."
and the later references to fruit again,
"she seemed to forgive her body,
all its chaos and collapse,
or maybe it was a final ripening of trust or love, abandon."
and the final poignant line,
I'm not sure what to call it.
What do you call it? I remember thinking similar thoughts during the months long deterioration of my mother's health in a nursing home and eventual passing away in the hospital. Dignity abandoned or maybe it just doesn't matter any more? It was hard to say.
I love her poetry. For me it is very personal and warm and human. I realize that the persona in a poem is not necessarily the author but much of Bass's poetry seems like snippets from her own life or experiences.
Looking through the reviews a lot of people seem to concur with me and I also noticed quotes from a number of the same poems I like. But there were plenty of other poems in this collection that are, perhaps, less talked about but also resonated with me because of my own experiences.
The Last Week
I thought she would want to save me
from it, the stench and the shame,
but in the last week of dying,
my mother let me change her diaper,
let me wipe her with a warm, wet cloth
and slide the sheet under her hips,
the flesh softening, bones widening,
gravity pulling her back to earth like fallen fruit.
I need to say how precise she was.
She had a rage for order, my mother.
In the store she wrapped half-pints of cheap gin
with the same care she gave to Chivas Regal.
She smoothed the glossy holiday paper,
folding the torn edge under, sharpening
the crease with her thumbnail,
tucking the ends into a humble origami.
I thought she'd cling to her dignity
but she seemed to forgive her body,
all its chaos and collapse,
or maybe it was a final ripening of trust or love, abandon.
I'm not sure what to call it.
I like the lines,
."the flesh softening, bones widening,
gravity pulling her back to earth like fallen fruit."
and the later references to fruit again,
"she seemed to forgive her body,
all its chaos and collapse,
or maybe it was a final ripening of trust or love, abandon."
and the final poignant line,
I'm not sure what to call it.
What do you call it? I remember thinking similar thoughts during the months long deterioration of my mother's health in a nursing home and eventual passing away in the hospital. Dignity abandoned or maybe it just doesn't matter any more? It was hard to say.
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