Breathing the Water

I picked up this little book because the title intrigued me. This is the first book of poetry I purchased by Ms. Levertov and I fell instantly in love with the depth, beauty and soulfulness of the poems. I highly recommend that you read it and memorize some of the amazing poems. This is my favorite: VARIATION ON A THEME BY RILKE A certain day became a presence to me; there it was, confronting me--a sky, air, light: a being. And before it started to descend from the height of noon, it leaned over and struck my shoulder as if with the flat of a sword, granting me honor and a task. The day's blow rang out, metallic--or it was I, a bell awakened, and what I heard was my whole self saying and singing what it knew: I can. Denise Levertov

Levertov's poems in Breathing the Water don't make you want to go out, run and jump for joy or sorrow. Rather, they tug intellegently at the heart and consciousness. Take the poem "Making Peace." The first line says "A voice from the dark called out, 'The poets must give us imagination of peace'. What a wonderful way of saying what she has to say. Her account of Ernest Chausson's death was imaginative and made me want to inquire further. I didn't find the poetry to be so wonderful, that I wanted to give this slim volume a "5," but I liked them, all of them, so it deserves a "4" in my humble opinion.

Denise Levertov has a brilliant grasp on sin and its consequences and an eye and ear for beauty ever bit as keen as Mary Oliver's. This is an enjoyable, meaningful book of poems that earthy subject matter. Multiple readings are certainly rewarded.