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jgintrovertedreader's review
3.0
I am not, nor have I ever been, exceptionally qualified to write a review of a collection of poetry. Back in the day, I could probably have muddled out something about rhyme and meter, but high school English is a long way behind me, and I've forgotten anything I ever knew.
But I do like poetry that's pretty straightforward and that says something to me. I have a collection of these that I've probably kept since middle school. Unfortunately, for the number of poems included in the collection, there weren't many that spoke to my personal experience. Maybe I read them too fast. I'm a fast reader and poetry is meant to be savored. I tried to take my time, but I think I came in at about a month. I tried to keep it to one or two a day, but I just got tired of lugging the thing back and forth to work and finished reading it.
Also, I'm not clear about what made these "Good Poems for Hard Times." I expected an uplifting collection, or maybe a "You are not alone" kind of collection, but really they seemed to be about anything and everything. Flipping it open randomly, I find a poem that reminds me of James Blunt's Song, "You're Beautiful," about instantaneous, hopeless, distant love; a poem about watching a man be unsuccessfully resuscitated; a silly little rhyme about a yak; and I remember reading some of those funny little Burma Shave ads. Why are those good for hard times? Some fit the theme, but, for me, anyway, most of them didn't.
Readers who know more about poetry or who have a broader understanding and expectation may enjoy these. This just wasn't the collection for me.
But I do like poetry that's pretty straightforward and that says something to me. I have a collection of these that I've probably kept since middle school. Unfortunately, for the number of poems included in the collection, there weren't many that spoke to my personal experience. Maybe I read them too fast. I'm a fast reader and poetry is meant to be savored. I tried to take my time, but I think I came in at about a month. I tried to keep it to one or two a day, but I just got tired of lugging the thing back and forth to work and finished reading it.
Also, I'm not clear about what made these "Good Poems for Hard Times." I expected an uplifting collection, or maybe a "You are not alone" kind of collection, but really they seemed to be about anything and everything. Flipping it open randomly, I find a poem that reminds me of James Blunt's Song, "You're Beautiful," about instantaneous, hopeless, distant love; a poem about watching a man be unsuccessfully resuscitated; a silly little rhyme about a yak; and I remember reading some of those funny little Burma Shave ads. Why are those good for hard times? Some fit the theme, but, for me, anyway, most of them didn't.
Readers who know more about poetry or who have a broader understanding and expectation may enjoy these. This just wasn't the collection for me.
wickedplutoswickedreading's review
challenging
emotional
sad
slow-paced
3.0
This is Good Poems for Hard Times.
For some reason, I figured they'd cheer me up or be comforting.
Mostly, they just made me more sad.
Welp, them's the breaks
For some reason, I figured they'd cheer me up or be comforting.
Mostly, they just made me more sad.
Welp, them's the breaks
sammydee12's review
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
adambwriter's review against another edition
4.0
https://roofbeamreader.com/2020/03/23/nevada-covid-diaries-day-5/
katy82's review against another edition
5.0
One of the better collections of poetry I have come across. It has a nice blending of some of my oldest favoriates along some eye open writers I had never read before.
helpfulsnowman's review against another edition
3.0
Hey, what are you going to do?
It’s an anthology. The problem with every anthology is that it’s not going to please everybody all the time, which means it kind of ultimately pleases nobody, right?
Garrison Keillor, for all his lake business, does a decent job of selecting poetry. Really. This book and its precursor, Good Poems, are both filled with some really excellent material. The biggest downfall, for me personally, is the inclusion of super-traditional stuff, Bible verses, for example. And I'm not a fan of reading portions of something. I know Leaves of Grass is impossibly long, but...I don't know. I'm not an excerpt guy. But hey, it's all about balance, and if the world has to read, say, Robert Frost yet again in order to be tricked into reading Denver Butson, then so be it.
I figure the most useful thing would be to list some of the poems I liked best. This isn't a list of what I consider every good poem in the book, because a very large number are very good. They're just poems that held my attention for whatever reason. I tend to enjoy poems with concrete, real details and story as opposed to language poetry. It’s all pretty accessible stuff, stuff you could probably read without being left with that all-too-familiar poetry feeling of “Well what the hell does that mean?” If that’s you, consider taking a look at some of these.
“For My Daughter in Reply to a Question” –David Ignatow (13)
“Starting the Subaru at Five Below” by Stewart Kestenbaum (15)
“The State of the Economy” by Louis Jenkins (27)
“Calling him back from layoff” by Bob Hicok (43)
“Working in the Rain” by Robert Morgan (45)
“Why I Take Good Care of My Macintosh” by Gary Snyder (79)
“Mother, In Love at Sixty” by Susanna Styve (166)
“My Husband Discovers Poetry” by Diane Lockward (182)
“Soda Crackers” by Raymond Carver (232)
“Driving to Town Late to Mail a Letter” by Robert Bly (253)
“My Brother” by Denver Butson (255)
It’s an anthology. The problem with every anthology is that it’s not going to please everybody all the time, which means it kind of ultimately pleases nobody, right?
Garrison Keillor, for all his lake business, does a decent job of selecting poetry. Really. This book and its precursor, Good Poems, are both filled with some really excellent material. The biggest downfall, for me personally, is the inclusion of super-traditional stuff, Bible verses, for example. And I'm not a fan of reading portions of something. I know Leaves of Grass is impossibly long, but...I don't know. I'm not an excerpt guy. But hey, it's all about balance, and if the world has to read, say, Robert Frost yet again in order to be tricked into reading Denver Butson, then so be it.
I figure the most useful thing would be to list some of the poems I liked best. This isn't a list of what I consider every good poem in the book, because a very large number are very good. They're just poems that held my attention for whatever reason. I tend to enjoy poems with concrete, real details and story as opposed to language poetry. It’s all pretty accessible stuff, stuff you could probably read without being left with that all-too-familiar poetry feeling of “Well what the hell does that mean?” If that’s you, consider taking a look at some of these.
“For My Daughter in Reply to a Question” –David Ignatow (13)
“Starting the Subaru at Five Below” by Stewart Kestenbaum (15)
“The State of the Economy” by Louis Jenkins (27)
“Calling him back from layoff” by Bob Hicok (43)
“Working in the Rain” by Robert Morgan (45)
“Why I Take Good Care of My Macintosh” by Gary Snyder (79)
“Mother, In Love at Sixty” by Susanna Styve (166)
“My Husband Discovers Poetry” by Diane Lockward (182)
“Soda Crackers” by Raymond Carver (232)
“Driving to Town Late to Mail a Letter” by Robert Bly (253)
“My Brother” by Denver Butson (255)
kapiolani's review
dark
emotional
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