Sunday, May 1, 2011

Poetry Paradise Book Review 1



Poetry Paradise

Hello and welcome to Mondays Poetry Paradise.

Today's  review features an American poet named Sandra Beasley. A writer who has already published two full length books of poetry and is currently releasing a third book. 

The book being  reviewed today is her second one, entitled I Was the Jukebox

 I Was the Jukebox won the 2009 Barnard Women Poets Prize and was published by W.W. Norton in 2010.

In page after page of flight filled fantasy, Beasley keeps her focus on what we all share.
She coaxes out the subconscious thread of our common humanity, things we have all thought
(although maybe not in an aware way) and gives those thoughts words.  Addressing themes as grandly universal as life, death and rebirth as well as the minutiae of life.
A jilted lover perhaps, or how about the mundane-ness of a middle of the week Wednesday?

Love Poem for Wednesday
 by Sandra Beasley
You're the day after Tuesday, before eternity.
You're the day we ran out of tomatoes
and used tiny packets of ketchup instead.

This book  of 90 pages,  reads as though  you ducked in to your most favorite coffee shop and ordered a rich pastry accompanied by a strong earthy coffee.
The perfect balance. Ah  the treat, to curl your thoughts around her words and  savor their meaning.
A lagniappe for the mind.
Here is a small sample to savor from the poem entitled
" The Story "
Once I was copper ore
running in thin sheets
through the gut of a mountain
and you were the favorite rooster
 pecking corn from the hand of
the farmers wife 


Or this beautifully shimmering line from "Vocation"
all I want to do is sit on a veranda while
a hard rain falls around me



I have felt exactly that way, havent you? 
It was Beasley's words that made me aware that I did however.
Let me end with  one more line from the poem
 "Vocation"

 If it calls you
its your calling
right?


Right.
Most definitely.
Sandra Beasleys evident calling is to write.
In all that is fleeting about life, she points to that which is permanent.
Dreamy and ethereal and richly elemental.
You will want this book.

The link to her website (and  her blog) :
http://www.sandrabeasley.com/


PS: You can also read  Our first post on Poetry Paradise here!

http://bluebellbooks.blogspot.com/p/poetry.html

4 comments:

Linda Bob Grifins Korbetis Hall said...

Beautiful opening,

Glad to know this award winning book.....

way to go.

Anonymous said...

Very nice post, it is a delight to read this review and so beautifully written. Thank you for this review!! Keep up the lovely work.

Unknown said...

Thanks for the encouragement, it is deeply appreciated!

Indie

Unknown said...

Lovely start. Led me right to Ms. Beasley's site, where I enjoyed some quality writing. Well done, Bluebell!