MUSEUM.

by Rita Dove

Poetry, Literary Studies, Poems

Genres: Poetry, African American, Fiction

77 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1983

About the author

Rita Dove, former U.S. Poet Laureate, Pulitzer Prize winner, and musician, lives in Charlottesville, where she is Commonwealth Professor of English at the University of Virginia.

Reviews

[Mattea Gernentz]

"So we wait, breeding / mood, making music / of decline. We sit down / in the smell of the past / and rise in a light / that is already leaving. / We ache in secret, / memorizing / a gloomy line / or two of German. / When spring comes / we promise to act / the fool" (November for Beginners, 31).

There were some remarkable poems (like "Receiving the Stigmata" and "Dusting") and stanzas within poems, but, on the whole, it was not as memorable as I'd hoped. I still love the title, and Dove's accumulation of poems lives up to the eclectic feel of a museum's contents. About 3.5 stars.

[Brittany Hebert]

The first poem in this collection, “Dusting,” was the standout for me. The last poem, “Parsley,” was also exceptional. Ironically, I understood the allusion in “Parsley” because I read The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao last year, a book I absolutely despised. Actually, I think I hated Oscar and not the book?

Anyway, Dove made me painfully aware of my lack of knowledge in the history department. I think these poems would have resonated much more deeply if I knew more history- especially Medieval and Renaissance History (hey there, Ap Western Civ teacher! Sorry I didn’t pay more attention in your class!).

Overall, Dove understands how to shrink the meaning of words down to their most basic essence. Her phrasing is tight and just exactly right, and this collection is solid.

[a ☕︎]

who sees you anyway, except
at night, and with a fantastic eye?

if only you were bright enough to touch!

has true presence: every word so precise, every scene articulately drawn. the first half was not as good as the second; the sections labeled my father’s telescope and primer for the nuclear age were the best. memorable poems were catherine of siena, boccaccio: the plague years, anti-father, a father out walking on the lawn, the sailor in africa—a viennese card game circa 1910, exeunt the violas, flirtation.

[Lorraine]

The early poems here don’t match up with her more powerful later poems, of course, but her curiosity, particularly with history, and her command of language are already in place by this book. An easy read, and an interesting one for any fan of her work. The copy I bought second hand was a first edition and a signed one to boot, making it an even nicer addition to my poetry collection.

[Nuha]

Rita Dove's MUSEUM is a timeless collection that imagines history inverted. Black history, European history, personal history, all are shaken up and combined in this electric collection. Dove's work invites us to place our Brown and Black hands on the so-called "canon" and dream why not? What would it look like, sound like, be like?

[Caitlin Conlon]

3.5 stars. this was a nice read & introduction to Rita Dove’s work! I was particularly struck by her description & the way she painted so vividly a number of different scenes throughout this collection.

[Dayna Smith]

An amazing collection of poetry by this prize-winning poet. A great introduction to her poetry, and a nice collection for poetry lovers in general.

[Christina]

Her historically based poems are brilliant. Her more personal poems are good, but just aren’t as in depth.

[Katie]

Enters a surprising range of moments from histories. Voice and line breaks stay fresh. Breezy read.

[Shannon Ward]

"Parsley" is one of my favorite poems of all time, and I've been meaning to read the whole collection from which it appears for years.