Chinese Architecture

From Library Journal
The polished, controlled surfaces of the poems in this artful first collection belie what lies beyond: a passionate dialogue of antagonistsparents and child, lover and deceiver, silence and speech, light and dark. While Shirley writes free verse, her concerns are formal: "an architecture of memory/ where images were stored in places/ of fitting size." But her imagination takes us "beneath the surface" of the places opposing forces meet to reveal again and again "that an edge/ is never a simple or a sudden thing." She is adept at using the specificity of nature to illuminate feelings of loss, desire, longing. Shirley pays close attention to craft, and her language resonates with an honesty and openness to experience that is both seductive and refreshing. Highly recommended for contemporary collections. Robert Hudzik, P.L. of Cincinnati & Hamilton Cty. Williams, William Carlos. The Collected Poems of William Carlos Williams. Vol. 1: 1909-1939.Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Buy from Amazon     Compare Prices

The polished, controlled surfaces of the poems in this artful first collection belie what lies beyond: a passionate dialogue of antagonistsparents and child, lover and deceiver, silence and speech, light and dark. While Shirley writes free verse, her concerns are formal: ``an architecture of memory/ where images were stored in places/ of fitting size.'' But her imagination takes us ``beneath the surface'' of the places opposing forces meet to reveal again and again ``that an edge/ is never a simple or a sudden thing.'' She is adept at using the specificity of nature to illuminate feelings of loss, desire, longing. Shirley pays close attention to craft, and her language resonates with an honesty and openness to experience that is both seductive and refreshing. Highly recommended for contemporary collections. Robert Hudzik, P.L. of Cincinnati & Hamilton Cty. Williams, William Carlos. The Collected Poems of William Carlos Williams. Vol. 1: 1909-1939.


Buy from Barnes & Noble     Compare Prices