Dark Wild Realm

The bright feathers of birds, their piercing eyes, the beauty of flight: Collier's collection is defined by such elegant elements, a chorus of birds that haunts the pages, the joy of song and the ultimate mystery of death. Sometimes it simply is the stark images of nature's largess that captivate the imagination, drawing the mind toward a reflective place where words become bridges: "One had feathers like a brood-streaked koi, another a tail of color-coded wires. One was a blackbird stretching orchid wings. Another a flicker with a wounded head." (Birds Appearing in a Dream) In other poems, birds set the tone of the moment, a joyful awakening at sunrise: "And you waking next but not laughing, not at all, not even aware yet of how loud the morning was becoming." (Singing, 5 A.M.) Humanity reaches into the past for instruction, civilization's lessons hard won: "Time's portion was so small to me, like the riffle of a current. Water led me to her: The way it moved with her anger, Also her love. One knows anything until he dies." (Medea's Oldest Son) The incandescent present and the haunting past are a fascinating mix, the visually stunning and provocative language of Dark Wild Realm remaining to haunt the imagination. Luan Gaines/2007.