Things My Mother Told Me (Essential Poets Series 95) (Paperback)

~ Maria Mazziotti Gillan (Author) "When you do something with your hands," my mother said, you have to put your love into it, and then, it will be sacred..." (more)
Key Phrases: San Mauro, Johnny Mathis, Long Branch (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is an intensely compelling poetry of all the human places we are given to live in" -- Robert Creeley

Product Description

This book is luminous, feisty, heart breaking, and fiercely honest, often all in the space of a single poem. Her voice has the vigour and industrial strength grit of Grace Paley's, and there is genuine wisdom here, an intelligence born of direct experience. These poems are a breath of fresh air in contrast to the fetid self obsession of so much contemporary verse...a real pleasure...a must read for anyone who has ever experienced the deep joys, agonies, and mysteries of the mother, daughter bond.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 104 pages
• Publisher: Guernica Editions Inc.; 1 edition (December 30, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1550710214
• ISBN-13: 978-1550710212
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,098,578 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Life in Poetry, September 3, 2001

By A Customer

I love this book. It is honest, direct, moving, and explores the territory of the ordinary life of a woman in poems that lift off the page, they are so lyrical and brilliant. Maria Mazziotti Gillan leads us on a journey into her Italian-American working-class girlhood and explores the complexity of carrying that girl inside her for the rest of her life. This a book about relationships within a family, mothers, fathers, children,husband, friends, place --all are clearly delineated and evocatively expressed. Anyone interested in Italian American literature or working class literature or literature by women should read this book. It is wonderful. i keep it next to my bed to read it againa and again.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Life in Poetry, September 3, 2001

By A Customer

I love this book. It is honest, direct, moving, and explores the territory of the ordinary life of a woman in poems that lift off the page, they are so lyrical and brilliant. Maria Mazziotti Gillan leads us on a journey into her Italian-American working-class girlhood and explores the complexity of carrying that girl inside her for the rest of her life. This a book about relationships within a family, mothers, fathers, children,husband, friends, place --all are clearly delineated and evocatively expressed. Anyone interested in Italian American literature or working class literature or literature by women should read this book. It is wonderful. i keep it next to my bed to read it againa and again.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too Drab for Poetry. Unimaginative Prose., February 19, 2000

By A Customer

I expected to find some wisdom presented in a poetic way, but the poems were drab and sounded like prose. There is nothing new here and the poet seems uninspired and provencial. I was looking for good Italian American poetry, but this isn't it. I've read DiPrima, Barolini's book, Gioseffi, Stefanile, Ciardi and From the Margin, Writings by Italian Americans from Purdue U. Press and enjoyed them better for their craft and imagination. There are many good Italian American poets who reach more out of themselves into the world. Gillan's not dreadful, just not very original as these other Italian American writers. Perhaps, she should stick to editing. I recommend the other authors named above as more fully realized poets and they are all available at Amazon.com, too.