Drawn Inward and Other Poems

by Mike Maguire

Drawn Inward is a collection of poetry by Mike Maguire comprising four sections: Word Palindromes, in which the words of each poem run in the same sequence backwards as they do forwards; Charades, in which each poem is spelled the same as the one next to it; Palindromes, in which the letters of each poem run in the same sequence backwards as they do forwards; and Poems about Trains. The poems are beautiful, humorous, and transcendent. Arguably some of the most exquisite palindromes ever written in English find their place nestled among equally gorgeous poems written in less familiar forms, showing that, even with poetry, perfection is possible. Maguire's wildly successful formal experiments ensure the palindrome its rightful place as a poetic form.

52 pages, Paperback

First published December 21, 2003

Reviews

[Holly Raymond · Rating 3 out of 5]

A kind of "I don't think it can be done!" "Oh, it can. Ok." sort of book. Impressive for what it is, but I don't know if I'd ever feel compelled to look at it again. I read this in a cafe, which is a great place for it to be, free for someone to pick up and go "huh!" at and forget about.