books 2008: Two and Two, by Denise Duhamel
I got this book back in February at AWP and I've been reading it bit by bit ever since. I'm not sure if this book is weaker than Duhamel's previous books--The Star Spangled Banner is one of my all-time favorites--or if my tastes have changed and I like her style less.
It was a pretty solid book altogether. It starts off strong with "Noah and Joan", which I liked a lot. Soon, though, Duhamel starts experimenting with form. "Incest Taboo" is kind of an interesting sestina variation. "Our Americano" plays around with the alphabet and aliteration and kind of got on my nerves. "Warning" felt like a workshop exercise (though I liked the last line). The mobius strip poems annoyed me some but also ended up being ultimately likeable. The "Lawless Pantoum" I kind of didn't get.
"Love Which Took Its Symmetry for Granted" is a very long poem, the centerpiece of the book, and it caused me some difficulty--it's about the events of 9/11, engaging in those events from the perspective of many different characters. On the one hand, I haven't seen a lot of poets write about this, and I think it's a valuable thing to do, a thing that needs to be done, so I hate to criticize, but it really felt too long to me. It doesn't go overboard into sentimentalism, though, and it's kind of an interesting meditation. It actually creates a meditative sort of effect as you read on. And on, and on.
Duhamel also included a long excerpt from Mille et un sentiments, which I thought was a creative concept and also interestingly meditative in its repetitiveness, but which overall I didn't really care about. I think I will not be purchasing the complete Mille et un sentiments.
There were poems I really liked: "Noah and Joan", "The Accident", "Embarazar", and "Beneficiary". There were also poems I thought were kind of self-indulgent, and I didn't really feel drawn in by Duhamel's experimentations with form. This is a playful book, and I still believe Duhamel's at the top of her game as a woman poet--she's got a sharp eye and ear, and some of the images are dead-on perfect and tight. Overall, though, this book is not going to be a favorite.
This is only my 7th book of poetry for the year. That's counting Song of Songs and the Gitagovinda. I'm okay with that, because I've been reading a metric ass-ton of good nonfiction. I would like to make it to 10-12 poetry books total this year, and I think that's do-able. I got some Mary Oliver from the library, and F lent me some books too, so I think it'll happen.
::edit:: You can see videos of Denise Duhamel reading some of these poems here.
It was a pretty solid book altogether. It starts off strong with "Noah and Joan", which I liked a lot. Soon, though, Duhamel starts experimenting with form. "Incest Taboo" is kind of an interesting sestina variation. "Our Americano" plays around with the alphabet and aliteration and kind of got on my nerves. "Warning" felt like a workshop exercise (though I liked the last line). The mobius strip poems annoyed me some but also ended up being ultimately likeable. The "Lawless Pantoum" I kind of didn't get.
"Love Which Took Its Symmetry for Granted" is a very long poem, the centerpiece of the book, and it caused me some difficulty--it's about the events of 9/11, engaging in those events from the perspective of many different characters. On the one hand, I haven't seen a lot of poets write about this, and I think it's a valuable thing to do, a thing that needs to be done, so I hate to criticize, but it really felt too long to me. It doesn't go overboard into sentimentalism, though, and it's kind of an interesting meditation. It actually creates a meditative sort of effect as you read on. And on, and on.
Duhamel also included a long excerpt from Mille et un sentiments, which I thought was a creative concept and also interestingly meditative in its repetitiveness, but which overall I didn't really care about. I think I will not be purchasing the complete Mille et un sentiments.
There were poems I really liked: "Noah and Joan", "The Accident", "Embarazar", and "Beneficiary". There were also poems I thought were kind of self-indulgent, and I didn't really feel drawn in by Duhamel's experimentations with form. This is a playful book, and I still believe Duhamel's at the top of her game as a woman poet--she's got a sharp eye and ear, and some of the images are dead-on perfect and tight. Overall, though, this book is not going to be a favorite.
This is only my 7th book of poetry for the year. That's counting Song of Songs and the Gitagovinda. I'm okay with that, because I've been reading a metric ass-ton of good nonfiction. I would like to make it to 10-12 poetry books total this year, and I think that's do-able. I got some Mary Oliver from the library, and F lent me some books too, so I think it'll happen.
::edit:: You can see videos of Denise Duhamel reading some of these poems here.