The Civil Tongue

The Civil Tongue

by | Oct 18, 2020

Wonder and Wrath by A. M. Juster. Paul Dry Books, 2020. Paperback, 85 pages, $14.95. Reviewed by Dan Rattelle It is difficult to imagine a more upstanding literary citizen than A. M. Juster. His work as an editor, lately of First Things and now at Plough,...
Stuck with Pound

Stuck with Pound

by | Aug 9, 2020

Cathay: A Critical Edition by Ezra Pound, Edited by Timothy Billings. Fordham University Press, 2019. Hardcover, 364 pages, $35. The Bughouse: The Poetry, Politics, and Madness of Ezra Pound by Daniel Swift. Farrar Straus and Giroux, 2017, Hardcover, 320 pages, $27....
A Paean to Craftsmanship

A Paean to Craftsmanship

by | Jun 14, 2020

Works and Days by Hesiod, translated by A. E. Stallings. Penguin Classics, 2018. Paperback, 112 pages, $8.45. Reviewed by J. L. Wall The new Penguin edition of Hesiod’s Works and Days includes a map. This is a curious decision. There are no journeys in the poem,...
Timing Devices

Timing Devices

by | May 3, 2020

Ordinary Time: Poems by Paul Mariani. Slant Books, 2019. Paperback, 80 pages, $11. Reviewed by Daniel James Sundahl The weeks in the Christian liturgical calendar outside the major festal seasons are numbered in ordinary time, First Sunday, Second Sunday, and so on,...
Yes It’s Poetry, But Is It Good?

Yes It’s Poetry, But Is It Good?

by | Mar 22, 2020

The Soul is a Stranger in this World: Essays on Poets and Poetry By Micah Mattix. Cascade Books, 2020. Softcover, 164 pages, $21. Reviewed by Karl C. Schaffenburg Lovers of poetry will find much to enjoy in this volume, which collects short essays written by the...