Certain poets harness inhuman powers of observation, as if they were closer kin to hawks, dogs, and heavenly angels in the ability to see, hear, and intuit their surroundings. Rarely such poets complement these observation skills with... Read More

The Lord is my muse, I shall not want. Green pastures, still waters, paths of righteousness, walks through the valley of the shadow of death—Thou anointest my head with poetry; my pen runneth over. The biblical Psalms, in all their... Read More

Ellen Bass’s poems might best be described as transcendental incidentalism. In "Like a Beggar", her prose moseys along, skillfully detailing tightly framed shots, one right after another, and then “a boy on a bicycle rides by.”... Read More

Some poets can’t contain their morosity, some, their cynicism, and others make mirth at the damndest times. Sasha Steensen, step forward, si vous plaît, cha-cha-chagrin included. Wickedly sharp, Steensen will relentlessly poke a stick... Read More

Laureates disdain the limerick, poetic device of many a hick. But not always. Case in point, Paul Ingram, renowned wit and bookseller at Prairie Lights Bookstore in Iowa City, who weathered the limeridicule and released this... Read More

Yes, poetry delights, yes, poetry disturbs, but at best, poetry brings clarity to the half truths and enduring myths of the human race. By that measure, Stonehenge is a majestic poem created by long-ago masons to better help them... Read More

Make no mistake about it, poet, you do the voodoo with life’s confusing doodoo to change it into user-friendly, pharm-grade palliatives to ease troubled minds. And should your mother commit suicide and cloud over your sunny schoolgirl... Read More

Surprisingly resonant poetry with skillful use of language reveals how animal companions teach us about life and death. Heartfelt verses written for a beloved pet have no doubt graced the journal pages of many a would-be poet. With "Dogs... Read More