Pieces of a Song: Selected Poems [Paperback]

Diane Di Prima (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Here di Prima, a disciple of the Beat movement and a practicing Buddhist, records her search for spiritual fulfillment by way of various religious, political, romantic and intellectual pursuits. Unfortunately, the poet's metaphysical and political visions become lost in meaningless abstractions or banal generalities expressing a naive dream of goodness (in "Revolutionary Letters": "Left to themselves people . . . share blankets, dope & children / they are not lazy or afraid"). An overtly spiritual piece, "Paracelsus:" offers the image of a hallucinogenic "juice of stars / by circular stillation / smear / the inner man w/ the coction / till he burn / like worms of light in quicksilver." Of the many love poems, the most effective are those in which di Prima uses specific descriptive details to evoke particular moments unique to different relationships. In "Poem in Praise of My Husband (Taos)," she writes "I suppose it hasn't been easy living with me either . . . / but we cling to each other / as if each thought the other was the raft / and he adrift alone. . . ." Di Prima is at her best when concentrating on the subtle nuances and moods of human behavior.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

& From Wherever Thou Willst Thou Gatherest Me
& In All Things Am I Dispersed
1 Mrn 38.30
4 Takes, Same Haiku
American Indian Art: Form And Tradition
And Verchiel
And Where Thou Art, I Am
Another Revolutionary Letter, 1988
Any Day Now
'apparuit'
April Fool Birthday Poem For Grandpa
Ars Metallurgica
Ave, Fr. Loba
Babylonia
Backyard
The Banquet
The Beach
Before Completion
Biology Lesson
Blackout
Brief Wyoming Meditation
Buddhist New Year Song
The Bus Ride
But In Gathering Me Thou Gatherest Thyself
Canticle Of St. Joan
Chronology
The Clearing In Autumn
Coscia's: November 1963
Dee's Song
Deer Leap
The Doctrine Of Signatures
Dream Poem
An Exercise In Love
The Fire Guardian
First Snow, Kerhonkson
For Bella Akhmadulina
For Blake
For H.d.
For Pigpen
For The Dead Lecturer
For Zella, Painting
Fragmented Address To The Fbi
Headlands: The Music
I Am Thou & Thou Art I
I Ching
I Get My Period, September 1964
In Memory Of My First Chapatis
Influence (wooing)
John Dee
The Jungle
Letter To Jeanne (at Tassajara)
Light Poem
Limantour Beach--1
Limantour Beach--2
The Loba Addresses The Goddess / Or The Poet As Priestess...
Loba As Eve
The Loba Continues To Sing
The Loba Recovers The Memory Of A Mare
Lord Jim
Love Song Of The Loba
Magick In Theory & Practice
Minnesota Morning Ode
Minor Arcana
Montezuma
More Or Less Love Poems
My Lover's Eyes Are Nothing Like The Sun
Narrow Path Into The Back Country
No Problem Party Poem
Notes On The Art Of Memory
November
Numbers Racket
Ode To Elegance
Ode To Keats
On Sitting Down To Write, I Decide Instead To Go...
Paracelsus
Parthenos
The Party
Phosphoros
Poem In Praise Of My Husband (taos)
Poem Of Refusals
Poetics
The Practice Of Magical Evocation
Prajapati
Prayer To The Ancestors
Prayer To The Mothers
Prophetissa: & Out Of The Three The Four, As One
Prophetissa: Three From Two
Prophetissa: Two From One
Ramada Inn, Denver
Rant
Requiem
Revolutionary Letter: 1
Revolutionary Letter: 12
Revolutionary Letter: 29
Revolutionary Letter: 36
Revolutionary Letter: 4
Revolutionary Letter: 54. How To Become A Walking Alchemica
Revolutionary Letter: 68. Life Chant
Rondeau For The Yule
Seattle Song
The Second Daughter: Li (brightness)
Short Note On The Sparseness Of The Language
Sixth Notebook Incantation
Some Lies About The Loba
Song For Baby-o, Unborn
Song Of Heloise
A Spell For Felicia, That She Come Away
Studies In Light
Swallow Sequence
Takeoff, Flight 347
Tara
Tassajara, 1969
These Days
Thirteen Nightmares: 1
Thirteen Nightmares: 10
Thirteen Nightmares: 11
Thirteen Nightmares: 12
Thirteen Nightmares: 2
Thirteen Nightmares: 3
Thirteen Nightmares: 4
Thirteen Nightmares: 5
Thirteen Nightmares: 7
Thirteen Nightmares: 8
Thirteen Nightmares: 9
Three Laments: 1
Three Laments: 2
Three Laments: 3
To My Father
To My Father - 2
To Tara
To The Spectre Of The Lecturer, Long Dead
Travelling, Again
Two Dream Songs: Dream Love Song
Two Dream Songs: Song Of The Crab Spirit
Two From Gallup: 1. Sad In Gallup
Two From Gallup: 2
Vector
The Window
Wyoming Series
The Yeoman Of The Guard
Zero
-- Table of Poems from Poem Finder®

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: City Lights Publishers; First Edition edition (January 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0872862372
• ISBN-13: 978-0872862371
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #339,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pieces of a Song: Printed Divinity, March 26, 2001

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Copper Star (Georgia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pieces of a Song: Selected Poems (Paperback)

To say that this collection of poems is "delightful" would be the understatement of the decade. Diane DiPrima quickly knocked her way up to being one of my favorite poets in the space of 5 days (the time it took for me to read this book !). These poems are bohemian and contemporary. They're forlorn in a controlled way, romantic but smirking, and strong willed. DiPrima truly outdid herself penning every word.