Poetry Readers Challenge discussion

I enjoyed this book of poems by Anne Compton. She writes challenging and thought-provoking poetry, concise and replete with double entendres and gorgeous phrases. I am left pondering the substance. Her poetry does not leave the reader complacent. She writes with an edge that pushes the reader to contemplate for a long time.

Here is a sample of one of her poems," Poetry and Belief"

"We walk into the mind's transept.
The pews nicked and polished. Patient. They've heard so much.
What they want is custom not thought. Kneelers, empty as ramps.
Ash Wednesday, seven a.m. Early light's unequal to a nave's leaded pane.
Way at the front, residue of fire. Earthy and mineral particles in a bowl.

Like poems, we're refugees from another century,
not a pragmatic bone in our bodies. Credulity, capacious as a priest's cope..."

I really love the idea of old poems being "refugees from another century." Fleeing what, I wonder? Decay/mortality?Thanks for sharing this, Marin.

Great question? I do think fleeing, among other things, "decay/mortality.' I love the phrase "credulity, capacious as a priest's cope."

Thanks, Jenna.

That is a really interesting sample. The idea that we are like those refugee poems.
And the detail makes me wish my church had a morning ash Wednesday service.

Wow, a very interesting, complex sample poem. I'll definitely be looking into this poet. Thanks for posting your review here, Marin.

The language is lovely, and the images. I have heard of Compton but never read her. Seems quite worth it! Thanks.