Scan barcode
bgg616's review
4.0
This 2017 collection by Frank Ormsby contains five sections. The first section is made up of poems about his birthplace, County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The second poem "Altar Boy Economics" is a hilarious description of the occasions for tips for altar servers including funerals, weddings, and baptisms. Which "pay" and which don't. It struck me that in the time when altar servers were all boys this was another situation where girls were disadvantaged. Many of the poems in the section describe local nature, and some are quite short. One of my favorites was "Landscape with Endagered Species" which was about the disappearing corncrakes (birds) and red squirrels.
The second section is made up of poems about Belfast, particularly Belfast in the years after the Troubles. There are poems dedicated to other Belfast poets including the late Ciaran Carson, and Michael Longley. Ormsby is one of a number of poets who emerged in Northern Ireland beginning in the late 60's up to now.He also takes jabs at the new tourism in the poem" An Evening in the John Hewitt with Conor McCauley - " A cruise ship has docked in Belfast for the day and the last ashore are rubber-necking past, their cameras crammed with shots of the miracle city getting up from its ruins..
The next section, which is titled "Twenty-Six Irish Paintings" features a series of ekphrastic poems written about paintings featured in an exhibition at the National Gallery of Ireland of Irish impressionist painters in France at the turn of the 20th century. This is followed by the fourth section titled "The Parkinson's Poems". Ormsby was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2011, and this series chronicles his experiences living with it. The final section "The Willow Forest" includes a number of poems written about the trial of a loosely described war criminal accused of massacres in an unnamed place. The parallels with the recently published novel [b:Intimacies|55918474|Intimacies|Katie Kitamura|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1605570704l/55918474._SX50_.jpg|87129689] by Katie Kitamura lends credence to the observations of the poet and the novelist.Very chilling were the observations in the five poems about "The Interpreter".
Ormsby displays skill in creating poetry about a broad range of topics, writing a number of poems focused on the same theses. Ormsby was named Ireland Professor Poetry in 2019. This honor will hopefully bring more people to read his work.
The second section is made up of poems about Belfast, particularly Belfast in the years after the Troubles. There are poems dedicated to other Belfast poets including the late Ciaran Carson, and Michael Longley. Ormsby is one of a number of poets who emerged in Northern Ireland beginning in the late 60's up to now.He also takes jabs at the new tourism in the poem" An Evening in the John Hewitt with Conor McCauley - " A cruise ship has docked in Belfast for the day and the last ashore are rubber-necking past, their cameras crammed with shots of the miracle city getting up from its ruins..
The next section, which is titled "Twenty-Six Irish Paintings" features a series of ekphrastic poems written about paintings featured in an exhibition at the National Gallery of Ireland of Irish impressionist painters in France at the turn of the 20th century. This is followed by the fourth section titled "The Parkinson's Poems". Ormsby was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2011, and this series chronicles his experiences living with it. The final section "The Willow Forest" includes a number of poems written about the trial of a loosely described war criminal accused of massacres in an unnamed place. The parallels with the recently published novel [b:Intimacies|55918474|Intimacies|Katie Kitamura|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1605570704l/55918474._SX50_.jpg|87129689] by Katie Kitamura lends credence to the observations of the poet and the novelist.Very chilling were the observations in the five poems about "The Interpreter".
Ormsby displays skill in creating poetry about a broad range of topics, writing a number of poems focused on the same theses. Ormsby was named Ireland Professor Poetry in 2019. This honor will hopefully bring more people to read his work.
More...