poetry review

The New Poetry Review: Oculus by Sally Wen Mao

NATALIE PATTERSON Oculus Sally Wen Mao 2019 Sally Wen Mao’s second poetry collection, Oculus, is a meeting of past, present, and future, at once a work of historical imagination and speculation for the digital age. Mao, born in Wuhan, China and raised in northern California, crafts an immense undertaking with Oculus, weaving together contemplations of […]

by The Salemite

The New Poetry Review: New Poets of Native Nations

NATALIE PATTERSON New Poets of Native Nations Ed. Heid E. Erdrich 2018 What is the purpose of a poetry anthology? Merriam-Webster defines “anthology” as merely “a collection of selected literary pieces or passages or works of art or music.” Truly, the compiling and editing of an anthology goes much deeper than this—the text must offer […]

by The Salemite

The New Poetry Review: Wade in the Water

NATALIE PATTERSON Wade in the Water Tracy K. Smith 2018 With “Wade in the Water” comes another vibrant and profound collection from Tracy K. Smith, Poet Laureate of the United States and Pulitzer Prize-winner for one of her previous books, “Life on Mars.” The much-awarded Smith presents in four sections thoughts on a surprisingly wide […]

by The Salemite

Contemporary Poetry Review: “The Best American Poetry 2018”

NATALIE PATTERSON “The Best American Poetry 2018” Dana Gioia, Guest Editor David Lehman, Series Editor In an essay published in The Atlantic in 1991, poet Dana Gioia asked, “Can Poetry Matter?” Now, over twenty-five years later, he serves as guest editor for the 2018 release of “The Best American Poetry,” a series that has, since […]

by The Salemite

Contemporary Poetry Review: “play dead” by francine j. harris

NATALIE PATTERSON “play dead” francine j. harris Published April 2016 francine j. harris, 2015 NEA fellow and PEN Open Book Award-winner, writes a poetry that is as difficult to describe as it is profound, subversive and challenging. “play dead” has been showered with accolades, including a 2017 Lambda Literary Award and is praised both by […]

by The Salemite

Contemporary Poetry Review: Reading Anna Lena Phillips Bell’s Debut Collection

NATALIE PATTERSON Ornament Anna Lena Phillips Bell Published 2017 The 2016 Vassar Miller Prize-winning poetry collection “Ornament” by Anna Lena Phillips Bell reads, quite simply, like a love letter to the Carolinas. Though the speaker never directly expresses this love in so many words, it is implicit in the attention she pays to the […]

by The Salemite

Contemporary Poetry Review: Celebrating Immigrants in “Home: Where Everyone is Welcome”

NATALIE PATTERSON “Home: Where Everyone is Welcome” By Deepak Chopra, Kabir Sehgal and Paul Avgerinos Grand Central Publishing 2017 The immigrant-inspired poetry and music collection “Home: Where Everyone is Welcome” is not naive. It does not attempt to suggest that America is a country wholly welcoming of immigrants, nor does it imply that all who […]