Some Ether by Nick Flynn
I loved Flynn's poetry book about bees: Blind Huber. It was gorgeous, and didn't exhaust the subject, which often happens with poetry books that have just one topic.
Some Ether is also fantastic. I read some of the poems from this book when it first came out because some of them were on Poetry Daily. I don't think they featured the best poems. I think the best poems in this book are the darker ones.
Most of the poems in this book are about life with his mother, who committed suicide when he was young, and there are also some about his father, who was homeless. None of the poems were about who took care of Flynn and his brother after the suicide, which gives this book even more anxiety. I feel like Flynn brings me, easily, so deep into his feelings. So many people write about losing someone, but he wrote something new--I haven't heard these poems before. I feel so emotionally invested in these poems, I want to do research to make sure the poet is doing okay.
The titles are mostly one word or a short phrase. There are a lot of poems with "fragments" in the title throughout all the sections and subjects. The stanza and line breaks are not regular, which contributes to feeling off balance. There are gorgeous images, and good endings in the poems.
My favorites from the book:
You moved me through each room
Fragment (found inside my mother)
Visible Woman
Twenty-Pound Stone (This poem was posted as the answer when someone asked "What are some good contemporary poets or poems")
Some Ether is also fantastic. I read some of the poems from this book when it first came out because some of them were on Poetry Daily. I don't think they featured the best poems. I think the best poems in this book are the darker ones.
Most of the poems in this book are about life with his mother, who committed suicide when he was young, and there are also some about his father, who was homeless. None of the poems were about who took care of Flynn and his brother after the suicide, which gives this book even more anxiety. I feel like Flynn brings me, easily, so deep into his feelings. So many people write about losing someone, but he wrote something new--I haven't heard these poems before. I feel so emotionally invested in these poems, I want to do research to make sure the poet is doing okay.
The titles are mostly one word or a short phrase. There are a lot of poems with "fragments" in the title throughout all the sections and subjects. The stanza and line breaks are not regular, which contributes to feeling off balance. There are gorgeous images, and good endings in the poems.
My favorites from the book:
You moved me through each room
Fragment (found inside my mother)
Visible Woman
Twenty-Pound Stone (This poem was posted as the answer when someone asked "What are some good contemporary poets or poems")