Laura Foley, author of WHY I NEVER FINISHED MY DISSERTATION, on tour April 2021
Publisher : Headmistress Press (August 18, 2019) Paperback : 108 pages
Named one of seven Best Indie Poetry Books of 2019 by Kirkus.
Foley’s writing may appear sparse and reserved but it harbors a subtle power. The poet’s greatest strength is her acute sense of observation. She possesses the ability to thread sensuousness into the fabric of everyday life. . .This is a dazzling volume of poetry that delights in crisp imagery and tender recollections.
—Kirkus Reviews
Comments:
The poems in this collection covers the story of the poet's life, from her young teens through adulthood, two marriages, and many travels. It also praises nature and its soothing effects.
One of the themes in the poetry is of the calming stillness of nature versus the foolishness of men. ("What Stillness") Scaling a mountain, she finds Nature brings things together for her, reveals who she is. (Fractalization") The oneness of nature and finding beauty even in harsh death, when all returns to the earth. ("Tulips") The power of nature to reveal the self ("Fork")
"I note the flash
of a yellow-feathered finch,
the glint of sun,
a dove's underbelly,
soft with reflected light,
as it glides, bending left -
as a chill wind begins,
stripping me of pretense." (Fork")
Family life is very prominent in the poems, from the conception and birth of her daughter, her daughter growing up and living far away from her, and later missing her presence.
The poet's husband and her later second marriage to Clara features in the poems prominently. Her first marriage to a professor almost forty years her senior, reveals "emotional manipulation, power wheel of privilege."
"I don't wish to accuse him now,
so long gone, but I see anew,
in my move away from him,
the smile I couldn't erase,
even at his death,
said everything I'm learning now. ("The Smile")
"Visiting My Sister in the Mental Ward" is revealing. She also meditates on deaths in the family, events that make her ponder about daily life.
She relates as a Grandmother and a grandmother's presence at the birth of children and their place in the family.
I didn't read the news.
I raked a rainbow
of pungent autumn leaves,
played abroad with happy dogs,
held my granddaughter in my arms,
and sat beneath an amiable maple,
attentive to current events. ("One Day")
Vignettes of family life, a new marriage, being a grandmother, all are revealed in the this brief poetic film of the writer's life.
I enjoyed reading "Why I Never Finished My Dissertation" tremendously, the poet's relation to nature, her reflections on her life and marriages, her parents, her daughter and grandchild. At the end of the book of poems the poet sings the praises of life in "Gratitude List," where daily things are appreciated, like sleeping late, the midnight storm, the morning swim, green tea with honey, her food, the reeds, and "the sand between our toes."
About Laura Foley
Laura Foley is the author of six poetry collections, including Joy Street, Syringa and Night Ringing. Her poem “Gratitude List” won the Common Good Books poetry contest and was read by Garrison Keillor on The Writer’s Almanac. Her poem “Nine Ways of Looking at Light” won the Joe Gouveia Outermost Poetry Contest, judged by Marge Piercy. For more information on Laura’s work, please visit her website
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