Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"Only if there are angels in your head will you ever, possibly, see one," writes Pulitzer Prize-winner Oliver (Dog Songs) in a collection that serves as an ecopoetic, transcendentalist guidebook for the wandering soul. Replete with endearing adages and prophetic wisdom, and subdivided by Rumi quotes, Oliver's three sections-"The Journey," "Love," and "Felicity"-follow the guiding voices of nature and sacred love. She expresses gratitude for the embrace of her partner-"I can't remember/ everything-// so many years!/ Are the morning kisses/ the sweetest/ or the evenings// or the inbetweens?/ All I know/ is that `thank you' should appear/ somewhere"-and explains that humans' need for embrace is why "the body/ gladly lingers in the wind or the rain" when one is lonely. Leading readers to appreciate the overlooked all around them, Oliver takes notice of birds, assured that "the reason they can fly" is because they own nothing. She also looks toward a cricket who no longer sings, redeeming him in his late age by reminding readers that this silence "doesn't mean/ he hasn't been an excellent cricket/ all his life." Oliver's longtime fans and those who seek spiritual renewal will find themselves a worthy guide in this sagacious, pantheistic read. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
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Review by Library Journal Review
"Make room in your heart for love,/ for the trees! For the birds who own/ nothing-the reason they can fly." It shouldn't surprise readers that Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Oliver (American Primitive; Blue Horses), long lauded for poems that explore her close ties with nature, also writes love poems. In this newest volume, she meditates on her journey along the paths of aging and love while still communing with nature, Rumi, God, and almost all that crosses her path: "You wouldn't believe what once or/ twice I have seen. I'll just/ tell you this:/ only if there are angels in your head will you/ ever, possibly, see one?" Oliver's poems are intimate conversations, with pacing that is easy and familiar. Love is at the heart of these small meditations. VERDICT Because she has the gift of finding the sacred in nearly everything, Oliver is one of those poets to whom readers return. Highly recommended. [See Prepub Alert, 6/14/15.]-Karla Huston, -Appleton, WI © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
