Saturday, March 12, 2022

The Vital Function of Constant Narrative by Marlys West

 
The Vital Function of Constant Narrative by Marlys West
EDITION Paperback
ISBN 9781733048873
Publication date 30 April 2022 by V Press LC

Each poem in this fine collection is a small jewel of a life story. When strung together, the resulting collection is part meditation on our place in the universe, part memoir, and part healing.

The writing is beautiful, such as this first stanza of the poem Bang:
Our universe began with the end of another. Now it’s
after dinner,
I’m standing at the kitchen window behind short,
white curtains,
hand in a hot sink full of platters, hand hovering over
cosmic dust,

And these last couple of lines from Everything Twice:
American English takes me ages to travel to the end of
a sentence

If you enjoy life stories, thoughts on life, and/or being immersed in words, I recommend this collection.

I thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the poet for providing me with this e-galley in exchange for a fair review.

3 comments:

Shari Burke said...

I enjoyed it :-)

Linda said...

Those are lovely words. I don't often read poetry. I love the idea of it but it is overwhelming for me.

Shari Burke said...

I know what you mean! I find that I just don't get on with some poetry for whatever reason. Then there is some that I strongly connect with. And a wide swath in between.