Winner of the 2010 Mississippi Review Poetry Series.
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Editorial Reviews
Review
Sonic delight in words and word combinations dominate Other Prohibited Items. The poet almost, not quite, but almost, bows out to let something else think for her. She says: Given choices but no time at all to think/—I’d always wondered, sweetie, what I’d do. Every poem in this book says what we might do with all the time in the world. —Dara Wier, Contest Judge
What a pleasure to read an account of contemporary American dailiness that is neither satiric nor blase, but affectionately sad, like Edward Hopper, like Randall Jarrell! Martha Greenwald's diction and meters are as impeccable as her wonderful eye for detail. ----Alan Williamson
When you read Martha Greenwald, you'll find a pitch-perfect sestina about listening to Dick Tracy on the car radio at night; a masterful portrait of a co-worker who tapdances in the copy room in time to "the collator's jumbled staccato"; and a poem spoken in the voice of a train conductor that is a credo of sorts, in which the poet s musical brilliance "the ring/of slow brake on smooth rails slurs to sail tack clanging/on masts" is matched by a deeply penetrating vision of loneliness, a vision of "companioned nothingness." Written with great heart and linguistic verve, whether the mode is satire, dramatic monologue, or personal lyric, these poems are passionately and precisely observed. This is a highly accomplished book, mature, beautifully achieved. ----Tom Sleigh
What a pleasure to read an account of contemporary American dailiness that is neither satiric nor blase, but affectionately sad, like Edward Hopper, like Randall Jarrell! Martha Greenwald's diction and meters are as impeccable as her wonderful eye for detail. ----Alan Williamson
When you read Martha Greenwald, you'll find a pitch-perfect sestina about listening to Dick Tracy on the car radio at night; a masterful portrait of a co-worker who tapdances in the copy room in time to "the collator's jumbled staccato"; and a poem spoken in the voice of a train conductor that is a credo of sorts, in which the poet s musical brilliance "the ring/of slow brake on smooth rails slurs to sail tack clanging/on masts" is matched by a deeply penetrating vision of loneliness, a vision of "companioned nothingness." Written with great heart and linguistic verve, whether the mode is satire, dramatic monologue, or personal lyric, these poems are passionately and precisely observed. This is a highly accomplished book, mature, beautifully achieved. ----Tom Sleigh
About the Author
Martha Greenwald is from Middletown, New Jersey. Her poems have appeared in several journals including Best New Poets 2008, Slate, The Threepenny Review, Poetry, The Sycamore Review and Shenandoah. A former Wallace Stegner Fellow, she has received awards from the arts councils of North Carolina and Kentucky.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Peanut Butter -- "Prohibited",
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This review is from: Other Prohibited Items (Paperback)
For those of us who have been reading and admiring Martha Greenwald's poems in journals, it is a delight to see her work in this collection. The title poem, "Other Prohibited Items" is not only playful and pictorial, it comes at a time that makes it poignant and contemporary. Case in point: My last flight took me through Logan Airport in Boston where an elderly Indian lady in traditional dress was going through an extensive patdown by a beefy female TSA security guard. Searching through layers of sari fabric yielded the prize - a jar of prohibited peanut butter. Greenwald's wonderful commentary on the necessary, yet the absurd, reminds us that witches do "lurk in these woods."
5.0 out of 5 stars
A wonderfully deft and delicate way with words! A delight!,
By Ron M. "Ron M." (Rutherford, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Other Prohibited Items (Paperback)
I've been following Martha Greenwald's poems in journals and am amazed -- publishers, hang your heads in shame -- that it has taken this long for one of her collections to appear in print. She's easily one of the most gifted poets in America. I can't think of anyone who even comes close. Her poems have a wonderfully light, deft, whimsical quality to them. These are wise and insightful glimpses into the everyday, and the everyday was never more enchanting. Yes, there is yet hope for the written word, and it can be found in this collection in abundance. Bravo!
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