Customer Reviews

House of Light

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I've read just about everything that Mary Oliver has written...and something about "House of Light" makes me sit up and LISTEN to the natural world. These poems -- I think especially of "The Kookaburras" -- invite us to become more accountable for every thought, action, and gesture. Mary's poems break my heart open again and again; they're soul-food for me; they remind me of what is essential. Mary is a compassionate witness for the exquisite minutae of life.

After reading "House of Light" by Mary Oliver (the book was a gift for my sixteenth birthday a few years back) I began to write. It is inspirational ! Oliver captures the essence of each animal, plant, and situation. My personal favorites are: "The Buddha's Last Instruction" and "The Hermit Crab" The book is refreshing and a must have for poetry lovers!

The poems bring us close to nature and enable us to create a link of awareness that is sometimes soft, sometimes shattering. We are connected closely to the animals and birds - "The Kookaburras" made me cry. The reality of death is treated in a way that makes us pay attention and live NOW and know that when we are enveloped by that vast darkness, as everything eventually is, it will be alright.

I like Mary Oliver's work, period. House of Light invites the reader on a journey to awareness of natural and simple everyday things, which take on a specialness in the chosen words of Mary Oliver. I can see Mary Oliver as a "Universalist" and a darn good one at that.

The awarness about which I write is that which leads to insight and love of things in nature. It is like reading about these wonders, and seeing them for the first time from your heart. There is also the gift of interior silence that is created in your soul as you "SEE" that which you read. It is no wonder that "House of Light" was the winner of the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry.

Donald J. Da Ros

House of Light is a wonderful collection of poetry by the Pulitzer Prize poet Mary Oliver. Her poetry provides an unrelenting guide to the natural world. The reader can interpret each poem and make a connection in their own life or they can appreciate the beauty of her words and move on to the next poem. In "Kookaburras", Oliver writes about recognizing your true self. Everyone should let themselves out of the cage and be free. "In The Ponds" Oliver paints a scene of perfect lilies. Upon further review, the lilies are not perfect but marred by imperfections. "I want to believe that the imperfections are nothing--that the light is everything--that it is more than the sum of each flawed blossom rising and fading. And I do." There are more important things to worry about in life than all the flaws. Oliver's poetry provides a practical awareness of the world around her.

While I enjoyed this collection by Mary Oliver I have to admit I am partial to "Dream Work". Oliver reveals in this collection her very honest observations about nature and the intimate friendship she has with the world around her. By her tender observations both complex and simple she weaves landscapes of beauty and wisdom. In this book you rise with the sun and watch the earth unfold its mysteries. A must-have for poetry lovers.

A Song Beneath Silence (2nd Edition) (Volume 2)

The first Mary Oliver poem I ever read was stapled to a gift basket I received from my company. The occasion was the death of my mother. I read the poem over and over, transfixed, unable to picture anything but the ending image of the transcendent light washing us from our bones. This poem went straight to my core and has never left, 3 years later. She was cremated, delivered to the light, and somehow it was right and fitting that this poem become my sole and proprietary piece of connection. Her works are soaring and filled with buoyancy. Her vision and quiet observation of the world has captured me gently, gently.

Ever since I became enamored of Mary Olliver as poet, I have enjoyed collections of her often brief, moving, and deeply spiritual poetry. HOUSE OF LIGHT is one of several thin volumes of poems, written over several decades, that permit one to bring these jewels of poetic art along without being a heavy thick book, so you could carry Mary in your luggage or your briefcase or backpack. This is simply a lovely piece of work.

This is another of Mary Oliver's incredible books of poetry. She has this simple way of creating a picture of a bit of nature by using simple words. Each book is a treasure.

This is a really great book of poetry. As I read each poem, I found myself seeing details of nature that I've never noticed before. I could hear the birds flying, and the bodies of water moving. I could also feel the fears that she invites readers to feel, as hopes that they will take life on life's terms.

My favorite poem from this book is, "The Pond." It is a poem about the power of faith and acceptance of what is.

In the poem titled, "Snake," Mary Oliver invites us to dream, recognize your soul and embrace freedom. And, in the poem titled, "Five A.M. In the Pinewoods,' readers are invited to recognize their resistance, then accept what is, as they let go of what has up to now gotten in their way, so that they may be teachable. This is a beautiful poem.