February 2024 MBR The Poetry Shelf

The Poetry Shelf

Change Your Life
Rainer Maria Rilke, poet
Martyn Crucefix, translator
Pushkin Press
www.pushkinpress.com
9781782278580, $19.95, PB, 192pp

https://www.amazon.com/Change-Your-Pushkin-Press-Classics/dp/1782278583

Synopsis: The German poet Rainer Maria Rilke developed one of the most sing=
ular poetic styles of the twentieth century. Visionary yet always anchored =
in the real world, his poems give profound expression to fundamental questi=
ons of love and death, of the chaos of the modern world as well as the spir=
itual consolation of art and nature.

Deftly translated into English by Martyn Crucefix, "Change Your Life" draws=
 from across Rilke's career to offer a comprehensive view of his most essen=
tial poetry, featuring major selections from the great Duino Elegies and So=
nnets to Orpheus alongside less frequently anthologized work.

Critique: An impressive compendium of new translations of 142 poems by Rain=
er Maria Rilke, "Change Your Life" brings a new generation of appreciative =
readers fresh insights and appreciation for how verse can impact upon the p=
erceptions of human experiences, especially those that, while intensely per=
sonal, and also universal. While especially and unreservedly recommended fo=
r personal, professional, community, and college/university library poetry/=
literature collections in general, and Rainer Maria Rilke curriculum studie=
s lists in particular, it should be noted for students, academia, and non-s=
pecialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Change Your=
 Life" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $15.99).

Editorial Note #1: Rainer Maria Rilke (4 December 1875 - 29 December 1926) =
is considered one of the greatest German-language writers to have ever live=
d. He is best known for his Duino Elegies, Sonnets to Orpheus, and The Note=
books of Malte Laurids Brigge.

Editorial Note #2: Martyn Crucefix https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martyn_Cru=
cefix) is a British poet, translator and reviewer. He is the author of twel=
ve original collections of poetry, most recently Cargo of Limbs (Hercules E=
ditions, 2019; photographs by Amel Alzakout). He is the recipient of severa=
l prizes, including an Eric Gregory award and the Schlegel-Tieck Translatio=
n Prize for his translations of the poems of Peter Huchel. He is also a Roy=
al Literary Fund Fellow at The British Library.

Visible Magic
Charles Dowling Williams
West Wind Books
9781737639534, $14.95

https://featheredquill.com/visible-magic

The haiku poetry of Charles Dowling Williams is actually reflected in the t=
itle of his collection, Visible Magic, which portends an experience even se=
asoned haiku readers will find extraordinary in its delicate interlacing of=
 evocative reflections whose inspirational heart lies in decades of journal=
 writing about the Kentucky rural experience. Perhaps no other poetry form =
other than haiku could have been chosen: succinct, nature-centric, and quie=
tly evocative, the Japanese literary tradition comes to new life under Amer=
ican pen and observation, here. Take '19 December 2021', for example (the p=
oems are arranged and titled by their journal date):

"this serene stillness
orange autumn afternoon -
maple leaves chatter"
or the Kentucky midwinter of '17 January 2022', observing:
"full Wolf Moon, wet snow
tracks of foxes and bobcats -
frozen fog by dawn"

All four seasons come to life, both animals and environment, with a sense o=
f immediacy perhaps afforded by the ability to reference journal in-the-mom=
ent entries. Firmly rooted an appreciation of the sense of place that is We=
st Wind Farm, the home of Charles Dowling Williams, Visible Magic translate=
s the seasonal magic of natural Kentucky for the world to see.

Libraries and readers interested in the applications of haiku's strict form=
 which go beyond Japanese environment and origins will find Visible Magic a=
 celebration of the great American outdoors and the even greater ability of=
 the American poet to capture its seasonal incarnations in a hard-hitting, =
beautiful manner. Ideally, Visible Magic will be chosen by literary teacher=
s at the high school level and up as an example of contemporary American ap=
plications of the traditional Japanese poetry form.

some blue, a little spur
Kris Falcon
UnCollected Press
https://therawartreview.com
9798988302216, $15.00, PB, 77pp

https://www.amazon.com/some-blue-little-spur-Falcon/dp/B0C9KJBDTX

Synopsis: Poetry has many functions -- some recreational, some 'real world'=
 relevant, and some that works of verbal art and storytelling in verse. The=
 poems compiled and presented in Kris Falcon's "some blue, a little spur" (=
her second volume of published poetry) are inherently fascinating and evoke=
 resonating responses in the mind and soul of her readers.

Critique: Kris Falcon's genuine gift for writing the kind of poetry that wi=
ll linger in the mind and memory of the reader long after this little volum=
e is finished and set back upon the shelf truly rise to the level of litera=
ry excellence. "some blue, a little spur" is unreservedly recommended for p=
ersonal reading lists, as well as community and college/university library =
Contemporary Poetry collections.

Editorial Note: Kris Falcon's attended the School of the Art Institute of C=
hicago MFA. Her new poems appear in Anti-Heroin Chic, The Hong Kong Review,=
 Red Ogre Review, and elsewhere.

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Midwest Book Review