Practical Gods: Pulitzer Prize Winner

This collection of poems is a gem. Mr. Dennis explores, from both religious and secular perspectives, issues of practical concern that touch all of our lives such as faith and its absence, paths not taken, regret, envy, forgiveness, happiness, and living a life that we can be proud to claim as our own, particularly in the face of multiple and often conflicting standards. For example, in "Guardian Angel," he illustrates how happiness often hits indirectly, "Like losing oneself in a casual conversation/ That tests our powers of empathy, not cleverness." In "Pride," he embraces self-esteem, suggesting that it can open our eyes to the good in others, even if it doesn't enable us to see in ourselves the virtues others find in us. He considers in "Department Store" whether the moments we covet in others' lives aren't "...only a truce/ In a lifelong saga of border warfare," a saga similar to our own struggle to not envy and be proud of who we are. In "Not for the Idle," he explores why the books of those persons often mistaken as idle, "Lined up on their desks, don't look like drinks/ Lined up on a bar..." In "The God Who Loves You," he suggests that peace can be found between the life we have and the life that might have been by recognizing the former as the life we've chosen. These are lines from just a few of my many favorites. I have read these poems four and five times, both because they are simply beautiful and because I can tell that Mr. Dennis has thought long and hard about these issues and I want to make sure I catch every insight he is conveying. With each read, I develop a greater appreciation for how exceptional his work is. These poems are reflective, honest, intimate, and rich in compelling metaphors, analogies, irony, and humor. I might add, as an additional compliment, that poetry is usually not my cup of tea, but Mr. Dennis's perceptiveness, as well as his writing style, which is never pretentious, captivated me from the start. So if you happen to be reading this Mr. Dennis, thank you!! Thank you for an extraordinary collection of poems and for the insights and inspiration they have given me.

Dennis is not a "difficult" poet, but he has perfected a wonderfully flexible, almost conversational style of versification which artfully conceals a highly pondered structure. He relies on enjambment to propel the reader from one line to the next, allowing the ironies to blossom almost as if by chance, as he spins out "what-if" scenarios over which his own rueful intelligence presides like a benevolent deity. Dennis' "practical gods" arise from the texture of our everyday lives, and wish-fulfillment reveries, but they are also religious entities, vehicles for prayer.

While this poetry is unlikely to appear in anthologies a century from now, Dennis has captured well the faith, doubts and concern for meaning in our age. A few poems require academic knowledge of poets and religious beliefs of other eras, but on the whole these poems are acceptable to the general reading public.His poetry is written in comparatively long lines with a conversational rhythm. Unlike some writing in such a style, however, his work is not prose broken into lines but rather carefully crafted poetry.The strength of the poetry is often in the cohesiveness built from disparate parts. Dennis is able to connect ancient mythology, Japanese poets, Biblical references, Moby Dick etc. to our contemporary lives. Examples, "Sun Rise" begins with the Aztec human sacrifices only to move to the Jewish diasporia's revolution from temple sacrifice to a religion of the books. Or "Eternal Poetry" which explores prison reform while insisting it is not a topic appropriate to poetry. "The Serpent to Adam" is a surprising evaluation of what was (or was not) lost in the fall of Adam. "Prophet" uses the story of Jonah to explore the work of a prophet in our own time, in soup kitchen.

I just heard a poem, read by the Author on the Jim Lehrer hour program and heard he won the Pulitzer prize.The poem was a wonderfully insightful look at our relationship and questions, and fear of gods wishes for us - pointing out that we may actually be living the life that is best for us.The life we chose.Bravo. And Congratulations Carl. I ordered 6 copies for myself, and my Christian friends. Perhaps they too may discover the god within themselves ... the one that really gets things done on this planet. If nothing else, perhaps they can lighten up ... and realize the path whether chosen or not - needn't be so damn heavy. Enjoy.

"Practical Gods" names some of our modern day gods such as materiallism, mixes it with Christianity, and classical mythology for a wonderful blend of poems. i haven't read any of Dennis' other collections, but his blend of humor and seriousness is excellent.