Firefall

by Mona van Duyn

Mana Van Duyn's most recent collection is splendidly witty, moving, sometimes astonishing. As Howard Nemerov said of her last book, "It is not only that the best of her poems teaches us so much about life, but that life, over a long time, teaches us the truth about these poems."

From the brief poems she calls "minimalist sonnets" to the powerful long poems "Falls" and "Delivery," both recalling incidents from childhood and youth, the work in this extraordinary book is that of a poet reaching the depths and heights of her own talent.

A companion to this one, If It Be Not Collected Poems 1959-1982 , restores to print in one substantial book all of her work from Merciful Disguises and Letters from a Father.

Genres: Poetry

83 pages, Paperback

First published December 7, 1992

About the author

Mona Jane van Duyn was an American poet. She was appointed poet laureate consultant in poetry to the Library of Congress in 1992.

Reviews

[Brian Wasserman · Rating 1 out of 5]

allusion porn, pretentious display of van duyn's literary knowledge, in other words a lack of originality

[Isaac Timm · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorites: Another Tempest, Myopia, Commencement, For May Swenson, and At The Mal

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. In many of these poems Mona Van Duyn draws upon classical forms and subjects. Some of these poems are what she calls "minimalist sonnets" where the form is broken down to 14 much shorter lines. The poet was born in Waterloo, Iowa. (where I bought the book, fun).