GOOD POEMS ~ various authors, arranged by Garrison Keillor
Lots of good picks here (fitting title) but I had no doubt there would be. I had gotten ahold of Good Poems for Hard Times first- a long while back. I hope to enjoy Good Poems, American Places in the near future. I copied so many of the poems into my quote journal that my hand began to ache. I eventually had to write the remaining titles of those I wished to keep so that I could look them up, print them out and just paste them in instead...too, too many. Someday, I will have all of these volumes on my shelf...somewhere. Currently, we move too much. Stacks and stacks of books are glorious, but heavy to move about the countryside, plus I hate what happens to books in storage.
Iscariot by Tosca Lee
Lee's writing- and subject matter- reminds me of dark chocolate. And I love dark chocolate. I love when a book glimpses a familiar subject from an unfamiliar vantage. Iscariot was that kind of book. Painting a vivid backdrop for the story of Christ's crucifixion, Lee illuminated a Judas that looked much too much like myself.
Nine Horses by Billy Collins
Keillor introduced me to Collins. My sister deepened my appreciation for him when she brought a few of his books to the beach last winter. His appearance on children's show "Martha Speaks" won him even more of my approval (for all that's worth!) And just knowing that someday history books will be forced to record a time when our poet laureate was a guy named Billy, well... that's exactly why I like him. He's a poet for those of us who don't "do" poetry.
In the Nine Horses Collection I discovered my current favorite: Litany. When I mentioned to my brother that he really should be reading Collins and went to find a snippet for him, I happened across two videos of Litany being recited- one by the poet himself, the other by a three year old. They are both worth glimpsing.
The video of the three year old makes me consider adding poetry to our catechism & memory efforts with Rye. I can hear her now: "I believe in God the Father, Almighty, maker of the bread and the knife, the crystal goblet and the wine... (She does so love listing ALL the things that God made-no two lists alike)
And... well, I thought I was the only one going around re-writing folks' stuff (if it weren't too prideful I'd quote that oft used adage about 'Great minds flocking together.. ' Still, I take permissions to continue 'the art of borrowing' ....because Billy does it.
And for posterity, the Martha Speaks segment: