snowmaiden's review
5.0
I hesitate to call this the quintessential Ace Boggess collection, since that would be putting limits on his future growth, but this compilation of his signature question poems is definitely something special. One thing I love about Boggess’ writing is the wonder he finds in the world around him. Any poet could describe the beauty of a sunrise walk, but who else would write about “a chipmunk riding its bullet train/ across the lawn” and “a biker gang of deer”, as Boggess does in “Do You Intend to Quit Smoking?” In his eyes, even spilling coffee at Starbucks can seem like a joyful experience, as “the barista in green/ dances like Gene Kelly around a light pole/ as he snatches up mop & broom.” (from “So, What Happens Next?”)
But I don’t want to give the impression that Boggess is some kind of Pollyanna. Sunshine is nothing without shadow, and likewise, there is plenty of darkness here to leaven the light. In poems like “Why Are There Days I’m Not the Person I Want to Be?” and “What Do You Care About?”, Boggess examines those dark places that we all have inside. “I am/ neither good nor bad, right nor wrong,/ a prisoner nor free,” he writes in “Where Will the Turmoil End?” Most of us, if we are being honest, could admit to a similar ambivalence in our own lives at times. Maybe this is what I love most about his worldview— his willingness to experience both the dark and light aspects of life as they come and then to report to us what he has seen.
Although I like the title of the book (taken from a line in “What Do You Wish You Could Dream?”), I feel it is false advertising here. With his gifts for image and metaphor, clearly Ace Boggess has not lost the art of dreaming anything, and I don’t think he ever will.
But I don’t want to give the impression that Boggess is some kind of Pollyanna. Sunshine is nothing without shadow, and likewise, there is plenty of darkness here to leaven the light. In poems like “Why Are There Days I’m Not the Person I Want to Be?” and “What Do You Care About?”, Boggess examines those dark places that we all have inside. “I am/ neither good nor bad, right nor wrong,/ a prisoner nor free,” he writes in “Where Will the Turmoil End?” Most of us, if we are being honest, could admit to a similar ambivalence in our own lives at times. Maybe this is what I love most about his worldview— his willingness to experience both the dark and light aspects of life as they come and then to report to us what he has seen.
Although I like the title of the book (taken from a line in “What Do You Wish You Could Dream?”), I feel it is false advertising here. With his gifts for image and metaphor, clearly Ace Boggess has not lost the art of dreaming anything, and I don’t think he ever will.
samanthakroese's review
4.0
Vivid imagery!
I really enjoyed the author's visions in this book which were painted so vividly with words. I was unsure if the formatting was on purpose at times but didn't let that bother me.
I really enjoyed the author's visions in this book which were painted so vividly with words. I was unsure if the formatting was on purpose at times but didn't let that bother me.
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