The Niagara River: Poems

Prize winning poet Kay Ryan presents The Niagara River, the latest entry in the Grove Press Poetry Series. The brief, free-verse vignettes cascade into defining, picturesque moments, perfectly capturing a thought, mote, or moment of time before thundering onward like the Niagara River itself. The result is a treat for poetry lovers of all persuasions. "Thin": How anything / is known / is so thin- / a skin of ice / over a pond / only birds might / confidently walk / upon. A bird's / worth of weight / or one bird-weight / of Wordsworth.

I am a big fan of poetry and this book did not disappoint me. I live in Australia, and therefore am not exposed to what is au courant in the US anymore [originally from the US]. I saw Kay Ryan on the Lehrer Report which is broadcast over here. She was reading from this book, and I decided to buy a copy. The poems are earthy and touch places of the heart that elicit a sigh of recognition. It is good to read poetry that is open, uncoded and taps into our everyday experiences with such elegant simplicity.

The poetry is contempory and uses traditional elements, such as occational rhyme. Wonderful images and subjects that linger in the mind the day after reading them.