Reviews

The Bad Wife Handbook by Rachel Zucker

matthewwester's review against another edition

5.0

I was excited to get this book in the mail because I really loved one of her other poetry books, Eating in the Underworld. When it arrived (just a random Amazon used purchase) I discovered it was a signed copy. Sweet! But as for my review --- Zucker is playful with language, fills her poems with these beautiful and surprising little metaphors, and the subject matter hits that nice balance of being completely autobiographical yet can-be-applied-to-all. (And by the way, you don't have to be in a struggling marriage to enjoy and relate to these poems, just saying). My favorite sections of the book were the first and last chapters because they are a bit more conversational, though I can see why others might enjoy the "Annunciation" chapter better. I wasn't surprised to get to the Notes section in the back and see the Annunciation chapter won Barrow Street prize and a big award from Lynn Emanuel (who by the way, if you enjoy poets that mess around with language, is a MUST READ). I had to smile when I saw how the book binding was shaped, too. Maybe the book is wider (and hardcover) because many of the poems contain long lines but perhaps it's also because this way the book seems like a kid's book or coffee table book. "The Bad Wife Handbook," right next to "100 Beautiful Nature Locations" or "How to do Magic," or whatever. Anyway, good read.

gabrielalt's review against another edition

Sorry. Couldn't finish. It's just that's not my style.

saaramyrene's review against another edition

3.0

I've read a few reviews that say the one-off poems that begin and end this book are inferior to its interconnected series of middle-section poems, but I disagree. They're almost all compelling studies of mother/wife-hood, but the middle poems seemed almost self-indulgent and sloppy, while the shorter ones at the front and back were lean and resonant--more so, I thought, for their compression. Maybe it's just a taste thing.