Mount Clutter

by Sarah Lindsay

Sarah Lindsay's poems have been hailed as "dark-edged ... with a buoying sense of respect-for the different, the unexpected and the challenging." (Publishers Weekly) Lindsay's new collection, Mount Clutter, is the product of an immensely original and exhilarating poetic sensibility, ranging wide across a highly distinctive imaginary landscape. In a voice that is distinctly her own, Lindsay probes the uncharted territories of history's curious little corners, reanimating obscure accounts of strange discoveries and bizarre scientific findings. A stunning sequence on the discovery of the Bufo Islands imagines what it means to encounter something as yet unnamed, unknown to human history, but bursting with possibilities. Lindsay similarly breathes new life into literary classics and ancient Greek myths, taking, for example, the well-known motif of Orpheus's descent into the underworld and transforming it into a hauntingly resonant portrait of the vicissitudes of loss. Lindsay's poems exude an extraordinary ability of fusing the outlandish and the little-known historical minutiae with the unmistakably familiar markers of the human experience. Mount Clutter is a remarkably sustained and self-assured performance -- stirring new poetry from the acclaimed 1997 national Book Award finalist. "[A] vision that beckons the reader after it into unexpected recognitions." -- W. S. Merwin

Genres: Poetry

80 pages, Paperback

First published September 19, 2002

About the author

Born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in 1958, the poet Sarah Lindsay works as a copy editor and proofreader in Greensboro, North Carolina. She is the author of Primate Behavior (Grove Press Poetry Series, 1997) which was a finalist for the National Book Award; Mount Clutter (Grove Press Poetry Series, 2002); and Twigs and Knucklebones (Copper Canyon Press, 2008). A graduate of St. Olaf College and the UNC-Greensboro MFA program in creative writing, she apprenticed for a few years at Unicorn Press, learning to set type, print and bind books by hand. She plays the cello with friends in a quartet that is sometimes a trio or quintet, and lives with her husband and small dog among toppling piles of books. In 2009, Sarah received the M. Howard and Barbara M.J. Wood prize from the Poetry Foundation and a Lannan Literary Fellowship.

Reviews

[Kitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite book of poetry from one of my favorite living poets. It's rare to see poetry that has not just an established point of view but actual world building. The poems in Mount Clutter are both beautiful and and captivating. They transport the reader to a whole new world that Lindsay has created and populated with wild and weird creatures. It's the only book of poetry I've ever wanted to location-scout for, and it is perfect.

[Stephanie Linnell · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5

[D'Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I cannot remember where I first read Sarah Lindsay, but I liked what I read enough to buy Mount Clutter. Unfortunately, I wasn't as taken with the book. There are 5 or 6 poems that I really thought were quite good and enjoyed very much. In a book of over 40 poems, that's not a great batting average. It's not that the poems were bad, it's just that so many of them felt so similar thematically, structurally, tonally, etc. Her style is very prosey, which isn't a bad thing in itself, but I found it largely musicless.

Recurring themes/images: rocks, fossils, science, excavation, blood, boats, islands, fur snakes, sloths, mythological referents.

[Grada (BoekenTrol)]

Usually I'm not such a big poetry fan. But I found this book on the wish list of a fellow BC-member. I'd like to see / read what I am sending out, so maybe, just maybe I might give it a try.

When I did give it a try, I didn't really like or understand it. I ended up not finishing, despite it was only a thin little book.

[Emilyrs · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Sarah Lindsay. She was so nice when I worked with her (even though we didn't actually work in the same department). And I love how she writes about science and nature but makes it seem personal. And it's funny and clever!

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book of poetry. Lindsay writes with beauty across history, biography, and other settings. Highly recommended.

[Mii · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great read!