Just when you think Dorianne Laux’s poems could not get any better—more beautifully sonic, more profound, more YES!—she gives us Life on Earth. The title poem begins: The odds are we never should have been born./Not one of us. Not one in 400 trillion to be/exact…
From there, Dorianne praises the miraculousness of what comes next for each of us, including our pain. Published by Norton last month, the poems in Life on Earth give a domestic nod to “Bisquick” and “Singer” (the sewing machine), elevating and complicating the life of women and mothers. You can get a sneak peek of just how connected she is (to life, to poetry, to the past) in her poem “Spirit Level”:
https://aprweb.org/poems/spirit-level
Congratulations, Dorianne!
The great poem, "Antilamentation," by the remarkable Dorianne Laux.
Posted by: Emily Fragos | February 08, 2024 at 12:32 AM
If a friend of a friend is a friend, then I'm friends with Dorianne, though I've never met her. Our connection would be Steve Kowit, a wonderful man and Dorianne's former mentor. Through him I learned Dorianne's story (I'd already discovered her poems) and like her poems, it's remarkable. Now Steve is gone, and I feel lesser for it; but I can still read his and Dorianne's poems; and for that I'm grateful.
Posted by: jim c | February 08, 2024 at 09:24 PM
Love her work; thanks, Denise.
Posted by: Susan Aizenberg | February 10, 2024 at 09:34 AM
"Spirit Level" is a take-one's-breath-away poem, and I can't wait to real all of Dorianne's new book, Life on Earth, which just arrived on my doorstep this week. Thank you, Denise, for highlighting this wonderful new book of poetry!
Posted by: Judy Ireland | February 10, 2024 at 09:02 PM