Sacred Place

I purchased this anthology in 1998, after reading some of the editor's poetry. I liked it enough to trusth his editing work. Just in terms of the senses, the book (hardcover) is like a delicious hymnal, a small sacred place of its own, with deep purple covers, lovely design details on the pages (yes, also subtle), and pleasing, legible font. (These are important to me in poetry anthologies. I like to enjoy the WHOLE experience of reading). While I was already familiar with the work of Annie Dillard, Denise Levertov, Richard Wilbur, and Kathleen Norris, this lovely anthology--wonderful for savoring on beautiful afternoons with some tea and cookies while sitting in my garden--introduced me to some new favorites: Diane Glancy, with her Native American experiences woven powerfully into Christian imagery; Naomi Shihab Nye, David Hopes.While I would have preferred more poetry and less prose, there are truly lyrical moments in the prose selections. Linda Hasselstrom's "Buffalo Winter" has this: "After a hot shower, I slept until nine, dreaming of buffalo bulls with gleaming horns and a glowing language that was not words; of lifting shovels filled with snow, and breathing deeply of moonlight as I drove dark highways. Always, something secret pursued me."If you value a sense of place, of living creatures, of the natural world in your literature, try this graceful anthology. And if you can afford it, get the hardcover. It satisfies the eyes and hands the way the writing satisfies the mind and heart. *Mir*