The Clerk's Tale

One of the best books of poetry I've ever read. No doubt. Reece has a unique ear for the way people talk, the real conversation underneath the surface of dialogue. His seeing and hearing are perhaps (and arguably) one of the more nuanced in contemporary poetry today, in that--like any great photographer--he manages to conjure the magic of making us, the readers and "viewers," forget that he is the medium by which we are bearing witness. Furthermore, in the way of talented cinematographers, Reece is able to convey his characters' interior lives with minimal dialog because of his flourish for authentic and evocative exterior particulars. Robert Pinsky said, "Poetry, art of the human voice, helps turn us toward what we should or must not ignore. Speaking as they can across barriers actual and figurative, translated into our American tongue, these voices in confinement implicitly call us to our principles and to our humanity. They deserve, above all, not admiration or belief or sympathy--but attention. Attention to them is urgent for us." This is what I believe Spencer Reece does, and does exquisitely. Wendell Barry tells us in his poem "How to be a Poet," that "... You must depend upon affection... Breathe with unconditional breath... Communicate slowly... There are no unsacred places; there are only sacred places and desecrated places." Few writers speak better to those ideals right now than Spencer Reece--though I will admit to a major bias. (Spencer--if you're reading this--please know, I don't think I've ever been more grateful for a book of poems. Truly. Will you be my poetry mentor? Peace, friend.)

I read this entire book of poems in one sitting---something I rarely do with poetry. It's hard to believe that this is a first book of poetry because the poems are so amazing, succinct and perfect. It's a journey into one man's life that will leave you wanting more. Thank you, Mr. Reece, for sharing your life though your awesome poems.

Reece takes his reader's around the US and brings them back to themselves. For the first time, for me at least, one sees the irony of the beauty of the outside of a hospital and then the agony within. One travels from the busy streets of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, to the quiet back waters of Florida. Reece shows a great desire of silence, for solitude. When a days work is done he goes home and shuts himself in a room, left with nothing but silence and his thoughts. A reflextion on life and what is all the hurry about.

I heard this guy read at a Poetry Society of America-sponsored reading and amidst all the other outstanding poets, his was the voice I wanted to know more about. He's the real thing.

Spencer Reece has achieved a rarity in first poetry books--a collection that displays the voice of maturity and the guileless wonder of youth. The Clerk's Tale concerns itself with no less than the journey of the soul. Many of the "tales" are taken from Reece's life and detail the loss of his home and possessions, his time spent in a psychiatric ward, and his gradual recovery and the reclamation of his life. Though these beautifully rendered pieces are heartbreaking in their forthrightness and honesty, they never wallow in self-pity or lapse into solipsism; instead they ultimately reaffirm the necessity of accepting darkness and difficulty as part and parcel of a fully realized life. I highly recommend this collection.