Night Picnic: Poems

I very much enjoyed Charles Simic's Night Picnic. I have yet to discover a volume of his poems, or essays for that matter, to which I would give less than 4 stars. Although I have given this volume 5 stars, if I could I would have given it 4 ½ stars. This is NOT a minor work, to be sure; however it is not, in my opinion one of Simic's best works. Still, I do highly recommend Night Picnic - the poetry is delightfully engaging and the hardbound volume itself is of a quality rarely found these days. I do hope you will pick up this volume, but afterward may I suggest you go further and invest in Simic's absolutely mesmerizing volumes: A Wedding In Hell and The World Doesn't End - I have perhaps a dozen volumes of Simic's poetry in my collection and these two are by far my favorites yet. Of course Charles Simic famously was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for The World Doesn't End, which you should know is primarily a work of prose poetry.

I love this book but fail to find the right words to describe it. As Simic writes in metaphors I am making a clumpsy attempt to compare this collection to a cup of tea -- subtle aroma with awakening strength; simplicity in forms with depth in meanings. Sympathetic, elusive, hopeful, hopeless, provocative, and more. The writer left ample room for a reader's own perspective. The poems cover a broad range of subjects and the collection is stimulating from beginning to end. Here is just one example: "Light,/Mystic tipster,/You come rarely,/If at all//Down in the hole/To see me kneeling/With a clip-on halo/Waiting for you." The excerpt is telling of the effortlessness in rendition but the weight of thoughts.