The Age of Discovery

by Alan Michael Parker

Alan Michael Parker’s latest collection of poems, The Age of Discovery, is a work of enduring beauty, filled with his signature tenderness and surprise. Parker’s interests range from the Psalms to the Internet, from a woman stepping out her window to die to two men trying to learn how to live as they argue in a row-boat. With an eye on some of the greatest love poets (Amichai, Mistral, Neruda), Parker delivers a collection deep in empathy, rigorously attentive, and formally
inventive.

In Parker’s poems, the time of day matters, as we move through dawn, dusk, and deep night. There’s often a knowing moon, an unknowable wisdom, and a relentless curiosity: he’s a poet who delights in imaginative play, too, with an abiding love of song and imagery. But we’re always smack in the 21st century in this new collection, with technology redefi ning the sublime, and the ever-present threat of loneliness—tempered, these poems suggest, by compassion and
humor.

Genres: Poetry

70 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2020

About the author

Alan Michael Parker is the author of eight books of poems, four novels, and editor of five reference works on poetry. His poetry, essays, and reviews have appeared widely in journals. Parker teaches at Davidson College, where he is Douglas C. Houchens Professor of English, and in the University of Tampa low-residency M.F.A. program. His awards include three Pushcart Prizes, the 2013 and 2014 Randall Jarrell Award, the North Carolina Book Award, and the Lucille Medwick Memorial Poetry Award from the Poetry Society of America.

Reviews

[Sara Sams · Rating 5 out of 5]

These poems are astounding high lyrics that often manage to be quite funny, too. As Major Jackson might say, Parker writes poems at "the center of sound," bringing huge swaths of consciousness to that center. I think Parker is at the top of his poetic game, here. He's a fascinating writer, artist, and incredible teacher of poetry; this is a book to treasure. I pass it on to all of my students.

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

AMP at his best: smart and playful with an undercurrent of seeking.