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theseventhl's review
4.0
As usual, Olds’ poems leave me emotionally devastated but also filled with possibility and life, and Balladz is no exception. I admit that the section with the Emily Dickinson style poems threw me for a loop and I’ll need to reread those before moving on, but everything after that had me in such a psychological stranglehold that it didn’t matter that much.
casparb's review against another edition
real! long even among shaz's group. i'M trying to juggle the subsections in my head, whether they come together, how they stand alone. actually I wonder if this would be a different experience as a series of bound pamphlets, like anne carson's float. As we've come to expect from Olds, many clumped-up jagged poems that we can keep for a good long time & study & so we should. I have my doubts about stamina thru the whole thing... but I really can't complain, it's hard not to read balladz and wonder whether sharon wonders if this is her last book. It doesn't read terminally, as something like CK Williams' Falling Ill does, there's an energy throwing towards the future that gives me hope Olds will be with us for a minute yet. Thematically, there's a feeling of coming to terms though, loose ends and so. The ending here reciprocates that of One Secret Thing, and now I'm curious as to whether this is a longstanding motif! closing so ! at the deathbed
I'm keen to reread it, take it slower. I kind of like the throw-it-all at the wall approach, oddly most reminded of Satan Says, tonally, in much of this. still think
I'm keen to reread it, take it slower. I kind of like the throw-it-all at the wall approach, oddly most reminded of Satan Says, tonally, in much of this. still think
thoughtcouture's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
3.0
Balladz was my introduction to Sharon Olds, and unfortunately, I don't think it should have been. Though I haven't read her other work, it was quickly apparent that these poems weren't her best. I was particularly put off by the "Quarantine" poems, partially on account of my pandemic-induced PTSD (though that's a me problem), but largely because they were the most heavy-handed of the collection. If a poem is about race, I don't need to be hit over the head with the fact that it's about race, certainly not from a Pultizer Prize-winning poet. The same goes for describing then-president Trump as "orange"--I expect something more creative than that.
This isn't to say every poem in the collection is disappointing. Not at all--I was struck by the final section, the second part of the "Elegies," in which Olds follows the progression of her husband's illness, death, and burial. The "Amherst Balladz" were the most amusing bunch, given that I'm a Dickinson devotee and am always curious to see how contemporary poets interact with her work. Still, with some exceptions, I found Balladz fairly monotonous; the poems all began to resemble each other, and by the end of the collection I was ready to stop reading.
I'm not giving up on Olds; even from this underwhelming collection I can see a glimmer of peak poetic prowess. I plan to visit her earlier work, and take this experience as a lesson choosing new-to-me poetry collections more wisely.
This isn't to say every poem in the collection is disappointing. Not at all--I was struck by the final section, the second part of the "Elegies," in which Olds follows the progression of her husband's illness, death, and burial. The "Amherst Balladz" were the most amusing bunch, given that I'm a Dickinson devotee and am always curious to see how contemporary poets interact with her work. Still, with some exceptions, I found Balladz fairly monotonous; the poems all began to resemble each other, and by the end of the collection I was ready to stop reading.
I'm not giving up on Olds; even from this underwhelming collection I can see a glimmer of peak poetic prowess. I plan to visit her earlier work, and take this experience as a lesson choosing new-to-me poetry collections more wisely.
smallmac's review against another edition
Now wasn't the right time for me to try this book, or the audio format doesn't work for me. I found the author's tone a bit monotonous, maybe I will retry reading the physical book sometime.
aepatton's review
5.0
Beautiful, sad but not, challenges a one dimensional idea of grief. Some of the parts about Covid, BLM, and Olds’ privilege during all of this were odd.
ironikal's review
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. If you are already acquainted with Sharon Olds' work, this collection is like coming home to a warm, familiar place. Olds, who doesn't shy away from laying bare her wounds and dissecting them in minute detail, takes on the pandemic in the first section with stark quarantine poems. The middle section is composed of ballads in the style of Emily Dickinson, which are both brief and luminous, and within the entire collection runs a new feeling of Olds confronting her white privilege as she reflects on her past. I wasn't disappointed with this collection and have followed her work for the last few decades. In her 70s now, Olds hasn't lost her spark, and her long sentences and striking imagery show well in this collection.
hamckeon's review
I find this collection difficult to rate. Olds is a favorite of mine but the first section, Quarantine. was a struggle for me. However, I did enjoy the other sections much better.