Poetry. A wide-ranging meditation by an accomplished poet on the uncontainable materiality of the world.
From yoghurt tubs to pop-up books to bobcats, from cement trucks to lost socks to the products of conception, MEDITATIO PLACENTAE, Monty Reid's twelfth collection, is a book about unruly stuff. Stuff that functions but also stuff that exceeds, stuff that dreams. A gathering of short poems wrapped into longer sequences, this is a book that pays attention to the world, in all its dizzying forms.
I really wanted to read more poetry this year, and I'm glad I managed to stumble onto Meditatio Placentae.
The poems are short, focused pieces that are all under gathered under specific topics. The composition felt clean, sort of - no wasted words. Every bit had its place. I knew I was going to love this as soon as I realized that the first poem was about losing socks while doing laundry. A poem after my own heart.
Several poems are deeply relatable, with a common topic or central idea. Others are fun simply for being very clever. My favourite, on the first read through, are the "Lost in the Owl Woods" poems.
The woman in the long coat has walked deep into the owl woods.
She is humming a small song to herself because she is afraid and happy.
The owls tilt on their platforms The light is perfect.
The poem above was definitely one of the best. It just so perfectly describes a specific mood I have while hiking that I have never quite put into words.
Overall it was a quick, enjoyable read, and one I am going to return to.