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bluelilyblue's review
4.0
October
O leafy yellowness you create for me
A world that was and now is poised above time,
I do not need to puzzle out Eternity
As I walk this arboreal street on the edge of a town.
The breeze too, even the temperature
And pattern of movement is precisely the same
As broke my heart for youth passing. Now I am sure
Of something. Something will be mine wherever I am.
I want to throw myself on the public street without caring
For anything but the prayering that the earth offers.
It is October over all my life and the light is staring
As it caught me once in a plantation by the fox coverts.
A man is ploughing the ground for winter wheat
And my nineteen years weigh heavily on my feet.
I first came upon this poem a few days prior to leaving for Ireland. A week later, it came back to me time and time again, and I'd recite it in my head on my way home: it is October over all my life; my nineteen years weigh heavily on my feet. Kavanagh gets it.
bluishgreen12's review
challenging
informative
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
brunaalcaiderodrigues's review
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
leosmile's review
4.0
So so so beautiful, probably deserves a higher rating, may move it up if I read it again. I just love kavanagh's style so much
httpspuppy's review
this was quite hard to read as a non native english speaker, but i had a few poems and lines that i liked. although i liked some of them, i feel like i didnt pay much attention to what it all means, so i cant give it a rating.
gijs's review
4.0
Pleasant surprise this one, will read more; strewn throughout the larger poem, you'll find little nuggets of poetic bliss like this one:
Tranquillity walks with me
And no care.
O, the quiet ecstasy
Like a prayer.
Tranquillity walks with me
And no care.
O, the quiet ecstasy
Like a prayer.
gerbenletzer's review
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
3.75
This collection is a mixed bag, but the main poem (The Great Hunger) is a thing of great beauty.
wheelylauren's review
3.0
This is a short account of the great hunger that occurred in Ireland in the years 1845-1849. I didn't know anything about this event in history prior to reading this book so it provided me with a minor introduction and overview.