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timshel's review
4.0
Jordan is one of my favorite poets. Her writing is equally gritty and beautiful. Often, while I'm reading her work, I find myself stepping back and saying "whoa." There is nothing else I can say. Just "whoa." And that's one sure sign of a fabulous writer.
This collection, her first, left me wanting more sometimes, but there were still many "whoa" moments. I've read parts of her follow-up, Sixty-Cent Coffee and a Quarter to Dance, and loved it. I look forward to reading it straight through.
This collection, her first, left me wanting more sometimes, but there were still many "whoa" moments. I've read parts of her follow-up, Sixty-Cent Coffee and a Quarter to Dance, and loved it. I look forward to reading it straight through.
xterminal's review
4.0
Judy Jordan, Carolina Ghost Woods (Louisiana State University Press, 2000)
Judy Jordan writes dense, exquisite poems that both shock and satisfy, while making you feel vaguely like taking a shower afterwards.
“...it informs the toads,
crouches them in crooked caves of alder roots,
pulses the pale skin under their slack mouths,
keeps them in the pond's tight waves clutching anything:
a pine's resinous knot, a fist of chair foam,
even a drowned and legless female.”
(“Long Drop to Black Water”)
I loved this book; very easy to see why it won the National Book Critics' Circle Awards, though I have to admit I'm somewhat surprised that they received such heavy subject matter with such aplomb. This one's definitely a keeper. ****
Judy Jordan writes dense, exquisite poems that both shock and satisfy, while making you feel vaguely like taking a shower afterwards.
“...it informs the toads,
crouches them in crooked caves of alder roots,
pulses the pale skin under their slack mouths,
keeps them in the pond's tight waves clutching anything:
a pine's resinous knot, a fist of chair foam,
even a drowned and legless female.”
(“Long Drop to Black Water”)
I loved this book; very easy to see why it won the National Book Critics' Circle Awards, though I have to admit I'm somewhat surprised that they received such heavy subject matter with such aplomb. This one's definitely a keeper. ****
arnie's review
3.0
I will read these poems again and perhaps give this volume another star. These are dark poems, featuring graves, death, blood, cold, the moon, family violence, poverty, grief. I need to read them again because I didn't always "get" them; I'd sometimes get lost in the longer poems and lose my way. I'm glad I read them and feel I need for some space before tackling them again, but I'll be back.
joannerixon's review
4.0
Jordan's poetry is sere, haunting, and full of grief. My favorite poem in this collection is "Sandbar at Moore's Creek."
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