Customer Reviews

Walking to Martha's Vineyard

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Franz Wright appears to have a great deal of natural talent, indeed. There's nothing bluff about the poems. The book is very memorable. The poems are direct, in a magical way. They aim for, and attain a clarity that saves us, gives us grace. One wants to call up one's friends and read the poems over the phone. They are that believable. Read the poem called "P.S." in the bookstore and you will want to buy this book. It is the book to be grateful for.

After years of a sincere, horrendously painful search for an answer to the suffering of his own life, and by extension, the suffering of humanity as a whole, Franz Wright has finally found some peace of mind.

It actually does not surprise me that Wright has come to believe in God; his lifetime of inner hell, alienation, abuse and almost unnaturally intense dedication to his vocation as a poet leaves him no other outs. "If they'd stabbed me to death on the day I was born," Wright says, "it would have been an act of mercy," and yet on the same page affirms the majesty of the world with all its horror.

Any fan of Wright's work knows that he speaks with looming authority on the subject of rebellion against any metaphysical solution at all, which is why we can take this collection so seriously. He has gone so pathologically far into the hell of depression, drug abuse, and alcoholism that anyone with similar experiences will understand his need for an answer to what he has witnessed. Wright is the kind of poet who, even during the height of what he would term "the poet's lonely fame", would often find himself in mental hospitals, jails, and rehabs. Until now, neither literary recognition nor his talent have brought him any relief.

Wright's poetry has always spoken to addicts/alcoholics perhaps better than to anyone else, and his gratitude for still having his brain intact and still being alive at all is something we can all relate to: "Thank You for letting me live for a little as one of the sane; thank You for letting me know what this is like/Thank You for letting me look at your frightening blue sky without fear, and your terrible world without terror, and your loveless psychotic and hopelessly lost/with this love".

Suffice to say, Wright's poetry itself is uncompromising, apart from the radical change in attitude he is expressing. They are the kind of poems that, reading them aloud, produce a hushed silence of admiration and respect because they are so uncompromising. While there is very little in the way of "light" material in Wright's body of work, this comes the closest, and is a must for EVERYONE. This should be put on high school book lists.

Some poems are meant to be read in a whisper, to be articulated internally, inside the mind's ear. What is lovely about Wright's poetry is its trust in the strength of old-fashion free verse, and its trust in a mature reader. In addition, it was a pleasure, for once, to read an open-hearted and honestly emotional book of poems. The fact that he is James Wright's son does add weight to the work, but who cares? In this case it just helps us to know the father who is being addressed, adding to our sense that he could be our father, too (at least for those of us who love the work of James Wright.)

Franz Wright deserves the Pulitzer Prize, and I'm humbly amazed that he actually got it - the highest award in Western civilization literature. His work teaches us how to listen, and even how to think another way... For some, at least to confirm what our middle-of-the-night voices try to say to our fears.

Here, he fulfills the promise tacitly made in his earlier "The Beforelife." Here, he comes inhabiting the words he sought when he incomparably translated the unknown works of Rilke. Here, he finally takes his place I think among the kindred spirits of Rilke, Rumi, and others less-well-known. A mystic poet who can write as if he's living next door. Who doesn't preach, who doesn't so much open our own doors as show us how he opens his. The art is in that; the art is knowing that's enough. A highly distilled essence.

It's easily read; deceptively so, I think. You might want light reading; this is not the book. You might want platitudes, attitudes of cheer. Buy yourself a cup of cocoa instead. You may not be ready for this. That's all right; someday, you will be.

Poetry conducts a Rorschach test on readers, hearers. The poem is *not* the thing, is not the thing you think it is - what you think it is, is really only one of the voices in your head come home to roost. You can tell by the feathers. You can tell by who's laughing.

If you can give yourself the time, give yourself a poem or two from this collection. See what you hear in it. I imagine, for some of us, it could be the words unlocking compassion, as opposed to love, as opposed to sentiment. His work in its spareness shows the superfluity of words, how we use them to amuse us. His work makes the poetry of emotion obvious, banal.

It could be the smallest of voices - just another poet - saying what it takes.

Franz Wright speaks to me, perhaps more so than any other modern poet, and he does so with an elegant, minimalistic style. He has a keen way of recognizing the common, often mundane aspects of our existence. Yet, when he captures them on paper and puts his characteristic spin on them, it's a thing of beauty.

Not to mention, Wright has lived. I mean really lived. This is an artist who has suffered from major depression, alcoholism, poverty and has come out on top. Although if you talked to him, I am sure he would say that everyday is a journey of new found meaning and sobriety. From interviews I've read, he is a class act!

This collection, as a whole, is about redemption and his new found idea of positive living. Everyone could learn from that.
The poems are never long, never tiresome or tedious and always interesting. He uses rhyme scheme sparingly and when he does, it's hardly noticeable. I also love his use of white space. In my opinion, no matter how great a poem is, if it's laid out poorly it becomes boring and its meaning lost. Wright understands that and has structured each poem to be its own work of art. Some of these poems could actually be framed.

Unlike other Pulitzer winners of the past, I feel that Wright definitely deserves the honor bestowed him.

Favorite poems and quotes from "Walking to Martha's Vineyard":

1. University of One- "And I've lost my fear/of death/here, what death/There is no such thing./There is only/mine,/or yours-/but the world/will be filled with the living."

2. Untitled- "Some say/the more you stray/the more you're/saved,/I wouldn't be surprised/....Set the mind/before the mirror of eternity/and everything will work."

3. Letter- "The humiliation I go through/when I think of my past/can only be described as grace./We are created by being destroyed."

Go out and buy this book. I promise it will speak to you...

In the book of poems titled Walking to Martha's Vineyard, Franz Wright will surely ponder reader's minds everywhere. There is a constant theme involving spirituality throughout his poems. Often you will find his poetry calling out to a higher power or demanding faith through fear. He provides a sense of something that is hidden to the outside world that only he will ever fully understand. He keeps secrets from his audience. The spirituality woven throughout this collection of poems can be compared to Rainer Maria Rilke's poetry, although it is not as heavily demanding in the spiritual sense. Wright's actual prose can better be compared to Some Thing Black by Jacques Roubaud.

Franz Wright was born in Vienna in 1953, and grew up mostly in California. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Walking to Martha's Vineyard and was a also finalist for his work titled The Beforelife. He currently lives in Waltham, Massachusetts with his wife Elizabeth and works for the Center for Grieving Children and Teenagers.

His poems are all connected in an orderly fashion that slowly moves the poetry forward with a subtle taste of satisfaction. There is no set form to his free verse and he uses punctuation for a reason, never taking it lightly. In his poem "Fathers," Wright beautifully discusses and compares his own father and a higher power, or a heavenly father. He calls out to the creator of the stars to create a new heart in him. I believe the most beautiful stanza in the poem is right after this when he writes, "Homeless in Manhattan, the winter of your dying." It flows so beautifully on the page. There is a constant sense of wanting to belong and to be loved. The last line reads, "and how often I walked to the edge of the actual river to join you." It is so wonderful because it is so real. It is not known to whom he is calling out to. It could be his real father that passed away when he was a child, or the Heavenly Father. It could be both.

His poem titled "June Storm" speaks about a sad journey through life - always living with a question and never knowing any answers. He always ends his poems with a very solid statement that ties the entire poem together, but at the same time leaves the mind to wonder. In "June Storm" specifically he talks about how as a child and now as an adult he does not know the names of trees or birds or leaves. There is a sense of realization that comes with age and is also despised. He ends the poem in three lines saying, "I felt this as a child, and now I know it."

When reading this work of art, it is best to read it from beginning to end in order to obtain connections and meanings in their entirety. While one poem can inspire you, all of the poems can change you. Wright's poetry should be read by everyone, religious or not, because there is no damnation, only captivating secrets and questions among the pages.

With this volume, I believe, Franz Wright finally, fully passed from beneath the shadow of his father, the famous poet James Wright. In fact, upon Walking to Martha's Vineyard being awarded the Pulitzer for poetry, James & Franz became the only father & son tandem awarded the Pulitzer Prize in the same category.

Like a number of critics, I felt much of Franz's earlier work got bogged down in issues relating to abuse and addiction - it seemed for a time he was destined to banish himself to a truncated audience by making himself into a single issue, thematic poet. However, in Walking to Martha's Vineyard, Franz Wright forcefully breaks free from simple categorizations - his poetry comes alive, embracing the whole of human experience, including of course genuine suffering and loss. This slender volume is somatic, visual and emotive - it reaches the reader on many levels. Also it's mastery of the line, the springboard of rhythm, is a wonderful balance of experiment & tradition.

I give Walking to Martha's Vineyard by Franz Wright 5 stars - something I rarely do. I think there is much here for almost all lovers of poetry to cherish. I believe you will find yourself, like I have, returning to its treasures over and over again, always wanting for more.

Twenty-five years ago I read Franz Wright's father's poetry feverishly. Twenty-five years later I read the son even more feverishly. James Wright did do a good job no matter what the son says. Success comes in many different ways. Including loneliness, or "trying/to stay alive", even abandonment. "All is for the best in the best of all possible worlds." This is an odd place I can finally agree with Voltaire's satire in his famous novel Candide.

Franz Wright is a poet of great pathos, but also blissful transendance, & a candid sense of humor. This through his humility shines all the more resplendantly. He is a poet who is very easy to relate to in comfortable ways; reading this book you might feel like these poems are a conversation you're having over tea with him about the themes of this book. This book is a small savior to me; I relate to his voice in ways that feel very personal & very important.

It's a remarkable book, and his poems are so true. Look at the poems about his father; that should make the decision.