schellenbergk's review against another edition
I especially enjoyed section 1 (of three) that featured looks back to life in the past in Middle America for Jewish immigrants. The poems are so good, so moving, and so accessible you keep pinching yourself, asking yourself ѓ??why donѓ??t I read more poetry?ѓ?ќ
The first third is so strong it carries the less accessible poems in the latter sections. Some are good, some obscure, but overall these sections donѓ??t have the clarity and focus of the first section.
Except for the final titular poem: itѓ??s a beautiful piece of work and a very strong closing to an overall strong collection. Highly recommended for all readers.
The first third is so strong it carries the less accessible poems in the latter sections. Some are good, some obscure, but overall these sections donѓ??t have the clarity and focus of the first section.
Except for the final titular poem: itѓ??s a beautiful piece of work and a very strong closing to an overall strong collection. Highly recommended for all readers.
livingpalm1's review
4.0
I wish I could remember where I heard this poet mentioned. His name was new to me, so it’s a bit ironic that I’m starting with his last book of poems, published posthumously after his death in 2015, to explore his work. I might make this a habit. There’s something crystallized in a writer’s words when they know they are reaching the end. There’s an essentialism that makes me take notice and wonder about my own. With much of his life spent working in Detroit factories, Philip Levine is often described as the poet of the working man. This slim collection of poems made the perfect companion to my own recent reflection on the nature of calling in one’s work.
mattleesharp's review
4.0
Philip Levine's final collection has everything you could want, really. It's the poetry of geography and nostalgia you come to expect from him.
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