I Praise My Destroyer: Poems

by Diane Ackerman

In her first new book of poetry since Jaguar of Sweet Laughter , poet and naturalist Diane Ackerman combines her deep understanding of the world with her immense passion for language to craft richly sensual poems that "honor all life/wherever and in whatever form/it may deal."

Imbued with ravishing imagery, these exuberant and lyrical explorations of aging, longing, and death demonstrate Ackerman's full engagement with every aspect of life's process. Ackerman muses on the confines of therapy sessions, where she intersects "twice a week/in a painstaking hide-and-seek/making do with half-light, half-speak"; relishes the succulent pleasure of eating an apricot, with its "gush of taboo sweetness"; and imagines the "unupholstered voice, a life in outline" in her stunning elegy to C. S. Lewis. Whimsical, organic, and wise, the poems in I Praise My Destroyer affirm Ackerman's place as one of the most enchanting poets writing today.

Genres: Poetry, Nonfiction, Nature

132 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Diane Ackerman has been the finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction in addition to many other awards and recognitions for her work, which include the bestsellers The Zookeeper’s Wife and A Natural History of the Senses.

The Zookeeper’s Wife, a little known true story of WWII, became a New York Times bestseller, and received the Orion Book Award, which honored it as, "a groundbreaking work of nonfiction." A movie of The Zookeeper’s Wife, starring Jessica Chastain and Daniel Brühl, releases in theaters March 31st, 2017 from Focus Features.

She lives with her husband Paul West in Ithaca, New York.

Reviews

[C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another collection of poetry that I feel was technically good, but didn't connect to my 'heart' as much as my 'mind.'

My favorite piece from this collection:

NOT THINKING OF YOU

Yes, the hot-blooded sun
yanking crocuses up upon their roots.

But no, your wild unbridled eyes
galloping hell-for-leather into mine.

Yes, the bloom-luscious magnolia tree
drunk with pale, brandy-snifter flowers.

But no, my spine's soft riverbed,
which you again and again and again kissed.

Yes, the fog rolling in off the lake
at nightfall, under the tolling of the stars.

But no, the blur of our knotted fingers.
No, the well water of your deep-rolling kisses.

No, the love-brightened room you fled
for the tight, local orders of your life.

No, my whisperless bed when you'd gone,
where I lay till dawn opened

red arms on the horizon and, in my chest,
nothing like day began breaking.

[Chuck · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read poetry in a while. I haven't had any ambition to write any in even longer. This book, which I purchased simply for the cool-sounding title, reminds me of the kind of poetry I used to write, the sort of ascetic I aimed for. There's a great mixture of traditional forms mixed with modern free verse and on each page there are plenty of lines that remind me of what good poetry can SAY by using simple but unexpected language. Beautiful stuff, really.

[Catherine Mustread · Rating 3 out of 5]

A small book divided into six sections with 6-8 poems in each section, of which the first section is the title of the book. None of them jumped out as particularly memorable or meaningful though the title poem had what I thought was the best imagery: " . . . worry hangs like a curtain of trembling beads across every doorway. But there was never a dull torment, and it was grace to live . . . and walk the startling Earth for what seemed an endless resurrection of days."

[Joe Imwalle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her poems are dreamy, musical and exuberant, great for reading aloud. My favorites are... “school prayer”, “The Sorrow Rangers”, “The Consolation of Apricots”, “Some would marry winter”, “you will think this a dream”, “tender mercies”, “searching for the comet”, “San Francisco Sunrise”

Two that I’m trying to commit to memory are “school prayer” and “some would marry winter”. And perhaps “the sorrow rangers” as well.

Recommended

[Monica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Technically impressive. The poet's scientist (or the scientist's poet) writes, in this collection, about nature best, and it was her poems directly engaging the natural world I liked the most. Although, not to be forgotten, the opening poem, "School Prayer," is gorgeous & the last stanza in the long "Cantos Vaqueros" is absolutely badass.

[Nicole Perkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started this Wed morning, and finished Wed night. (It's a slim volume of poetry, which explains the speed. It's written with Dian Ackerman's usual elegance and depth.) I wish the poetry I experienced was as Ackerman's: "How can it all end, / the cabbage whites aflutter / like tissue-paper prayers / lofting to Heaven in a Japanese temple, / the yellow roses numbingly fragrant / and even the spiky conifer / whispering scent?" (from 'I Praise My Destroyer')
From 'Natural Wonders': The old moon lying in the young moon's arms / lives in the shadow of her crescent light / and yet he rounds her out, sheilds her from harm / as she ripens the star-encrusted night. Stunning. Simple, stark, almost, in that she doesn't use any more words than she feels she needs to, yet she presents you with the world.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

From "Cantos Vaqueros":

One morning as I closed the cyclone-fence gate / to begin a slow drift / down to the cookhouse on foot / (because my truck wheels were glued / in deep mud once again), / I walked straight into / the waiting non-arms of a snake, / its tan beaded-bag skin / studded with black diamonds.

Up it coiled to speak to me a eye level. / Imagine! that sleek finger / rising out of the land's palm / and coiling faster than a Hindu rope. / The thrill of a bull snake / startled in the morning / when the mesas lie pooled / in a custard of light / kept me bright than ball lightning all day.

Praise leapt first to mind / before flight or danger, / praise that knows no half-truth, and pardons all.

[Timothy Juhl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this up a couple weeks ago at a thrift store and in keeping with my goal of reading a poetry book before it is given space on my shelf, I will add this one to my collection.

I enjoy Ackerman's writing, and this was my first exposure to her poetry and while there is a heavy reliance on metaphor throughout the work, she is careful to provide context in the narrative for the reader to decipher the deeper meanings.

Ackerman is a master of using our senses to create vivid pictures and feelings (as she should considering her book, "The History of the Senses" has long been touted among poets as a must-read). Ackerman isn't afraid to play with forms, there's one ghazal and one loose villanelle. She has one poem written in Middle English that did not score points for me.

While she includes some longer poems throughout the collection, the final poem is more than seven pages and for this reader and poet, there's no good reason for a poem to go beyond two pages (and even then, maybe it could be edited down to fit one page). We're just not committed to reading poems of such length and often the original thought that inspired the poem is long forgotten by the time the reader gets to the final lines.

[sarah ౨ৎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn’t really have any expectations going in but really loved this. Something about Diane Ackerman’s writing is so full-bodied, lush, alive, full of delight in the world and life.

[Billie Daddario · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the way her words pull in my brain and roll around and never leave.
But no, the blur four knotted fingers.
No, the water of your deep rolling kisses. (79)
Words like these fill the pages and my brain and I just can't unknot the string and pull them neatly through my mind. I love her vocabulary. I love the words she chooses. I love the way they look on the page and sound in my ear and roll around in my head.
She is a spectacular poet.

[Arnie Kahn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked a number of these poems, touched by a few, but struggled with others. I need to put it back on the shelf for now but will pick up in the future and perhaps give it another star. Love "We Die" on the death of Carl Sagan.

[Billie]

Diane Ackerman hits a home run.

I loved this book of poetry. I love the raw sensuality of it. I'm not sure which poem was my favorite. Each time I chose a favorite I would read on and suddenly find a new favorite.

[Lizette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Llegué a esta poesía porque es la misma autora de “Una historia natural de los sentidos”, un libro que me encanta y atesoro. Encontré mucha belleza aquí también, teniendo en cuenta que usé traductores online pa’ poder entender.

[Paul · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my cattle of fish, but still an interesting read.

[Lisa Laureano · Rating 3 out of 5]

My favorite poem in this collection is "When the Deep Purple Falls."

[scarlettraces]

DNF - bland

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lush and evocative.

[Louise Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5? some really resonant poems but some that didn’t strike as powerfully. but they seem to be in the lineage of my own poetry so will be thinking about them.

[༺Kiki༻ · Rating 3 out of 5]

★★★★★ Elegy for John Condry
★★★★★ I Praise My Destroyer

You might also enjoy:
✱ Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems
✱ Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

Anything by Mary Oliver, but especially:
✱ Owls and Other Fantasies: Poems and Essays
✱ Blue Iris: Poems and Essays
✱ Why I Wake Early: New Poems
✱ Red Bird: Poems
✱ The Truro Bear and Other Adventures: Poems and Essays
✱ Swan: Poems and Prose Poems
✱ Upstream: Select Essays
✱ House of Light

[Hans · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars - I really loved a few of the poems in this collection, but a large number of them felt technically strong but not strong enough to pierce my readers heart. I was reading this at the same time as Mary Ruefle's collection of (poem-like) prose, The Most of It. I couldn't wait to go to the next piece in that book, but here, I eventually just wanted to finish. Thankfully, the final, longer poem "Cantos Vaqueros" was one of my favorites in the collection. I see that there is brilliance here, but I did not always feel it.

[Sam Albala · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn't in love with this book. Sometimes her language and skill was wonderful, but she used some methods that would be better suited for prose or non-fiction. I do believe Ackerman is a wealth of knowledge and a great writer but I can see her being much better in other genres. If you do find yourself wanting to read this book I urge you to not give up on her here, maybe on her poetry, but not on her as a writer.

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I say about Diane's poetry? Years ago I came across some of her non-fiction work and I loved the way she would write in a kind of lyrical, musical way. I had a hunch that she probably is a poet as well. After a little research I discovered her books of poetry and from that moment on I have been inspired to write my own poems. I have since then read many, many poems, but to me Diane's poetry is the best. I also recommend reading Jaguar of Sweet Laughter and Origami Bridges.

[Lyn]

All her work, poetry and prose, is marked by a deep sensuous imagery, often fresh and startling--but every so often a line or two will strike me as hopelessly middle-brow and pedestrian. Taken as a whole, the body of work is really lovely. Anyone who tries to live richly in the world will identify with her voice.

[Sarah Goldberg]

At dawn tomorrow
I'll go ballooning:
a slow, dazzling ascent
in the liquid cool of the day,
while I try to pull
the sky through my arms,
try to rise above
the weight of your memory.

There's a lot of death in this volume. But a lot of nature, too, and wistfulness, and love.

"The gabby inmate of my ribs" is the best description of the heart ever.

[Isla McKetta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gorgeous imagery but I really wished the narrative was less literal.

[Elsie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm perhaps neither a mystic or a marveler.