Nude Siren

by Peter Richards

"For Richards, life in a poem is like life in a body—most at risk, and most fully at play."—David Rivard, Ploughshares Exfoliating language with wit, Nude Siren is sardonic, intimate, sump-tuous; an exacting sense of remaking the probabilities of words. Richards knows where to find the sinister in humor, and the grace conveyed by beige light. Peter Richards is a recipient of a Massachusetts Cultural Council Grant in Poetry, an Iowa Arts Fellowship, an Academy of American Poets Prize, and the John Logan Award. He is the author of Oubliette (Verse Press, 2001).

Genres: Poetry

80 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2003

Reviews

[Patrick Duggan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Upon first inspection, Nude Siren is a slam-dance of cubism, language writing, and American surrealism, a secret language spoken between friends with both knowing there's no need for a decoder ring, because the words can mean anything and everything. Nude Siren is a walk through a closet of curiosities, skeletons, and almanacs. Richards' images are astounding, the diary of a Picasso painting with open pages, or a naturalistic photograph of complete and perfect nonsense. The depth of originality is astounding, the freshness of language and the secrets therein that keep the reader on his or her toes.

Even if the immediate focus is on the odd originality of the language, Nude Siren doesn't waste a single word or breath. The way Richards pairs surrealism with imagism, a lack of ornamentation, and a pacing of metered breath, creates an H.D. meets Appolinaire, something truly wonderful and smart. As the oddity builds, the occasional moment of complete lyric and narrative clarity draws attention like a torch and violin coming from a bass darkness. It flicks the moment of importance to live, without any sort of heavy hand.

The poems are a collection in the sense of a menagerie, a Santa's Village set out on a poet's table with abstraction for snow.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book of poems I have read by Richards. I came across Helsinki on www.ronslate.com in Ron's bi-annual poetry review.

After reading Helsinki, I bought both Nude Siren and Oubliette.

I have enjoyed all three of the volumes.

It is very interesting to see the genesis of the poet through these three works. There is def. a clear path which leads to Helsinki, I believe his strongest work.

Nude Siren is solid. His use of lanugage is captivating. I found myself having to read and re-read several of the pieces in the book to be sure I understood the experience being presented

I would recommend Richards to anyone who has an appreciation for more lyric poetry (though he has narrative threads through-out).

And I hope he will publish more soon.

[Poet21 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A complete original.