From Publishers Weekly
Selected for the National Poetry Series by Louise Gluck, Stockwell's first volume contains short poems that are neither objectionable nor memorable. The seven lines of "Memorial for the Dead Brother" end with the poet's aim "to make real people of my family." But little here bears the impact of the real. We are introduced to actors, goddesses, musicians and biblical figures, who carry as much emotional weight as a mother, a brother, a sister. The father (tyrant, berating his wife and children) comes closest to being a real presence for readers. Descriptions of lesbian couples seem superficial, as with a couple in a parking lot or, in "At the Exhibit," an aunt who bakes bread as a Calder exhibit closes: "I brought a young woman/ to dinner who lifts my face/ with kisses."
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Early in these pages Stockwell tells us that "Calder knew everything about animals," and we are reminded of that artist's circus, his theater of animals. Stockwell's own theater-her home and family-is as memorable. These poems offer stone-hard and sad glimpses at living. Father is "a gray man/there's mold in his teacup"; mothers "wait/like obelisks above the hill,/the long years weighing them." These poems leap from real to impressionistic, marvelous in their language and shored up by unforgettable images that cut into the domestic theater to find the wilderness there. "You've touched someone whose heart/is such a small dish, it overturned." These intelligent, sensual poems look frankly at the malfunctions of family, the unrelenting if thoughtless abuse, and the redemptive solace that comes with love. Dark but powerful, this collection is not for the weak of heart, though many will find here much worth their while. Recommended for most poetry collections.
Louis McKee, Painted Bride Arts Ctr., Philadelphia
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Louis McKee, Painted Bride Arts Ctr., Philadelphia
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
