Good News Department

I've had three pieces of good news this past week. First is an excellent review of my book, Temptation by Water. The reviewer, Maryanne Hannan, has done a wonderful job with the review which appears in Innisfree Poetry Journal, a very fine online journal devoted to poetry and 2-3 book reviews. I particularly like this review as Hannan considers all three of my full-length books. She points out similarities and differences, traces developments. I think it's pretty cool to have my entire oeuvre covered!

The review begins, "The temptation to read Diane Lockward's latest book, Temptation by Water, as the final volume of a trilogy, building on her two previous full-length collections, Eve's Red Dress (Wind Publications, 2003) and What Feeds Us (Wind Publications, 2006)—proves as irresistible as her luscious homage to peach, "Prunis Persica." The books, with striking cover art by Brian Rumbolo, complement each other physically and share the same gutsy, intelligent voice, forthright exploration of a deeply particular human life, and lavishly precise language." Read the entire review HERE. While you're there, be sure to check out the poetry.

The next piece of good news appeared on my front porch in a package delivered by FedEx. It was a complimentary copy of the 2012 Poet's Market. Nice, but the real surprise was discovering that my article, "Finding Readers: How to Get Your Poetry into Their Hands," is reprinted there—for the 4th time! I like having my article appear and reappear in what many poets consider their bible. The articles in this edition are especially good. So if you usually skip them, don't this time. For example, there's a wonderful article by Taylor Mali on how to give a good reading. If you've ever heard Taylor give a reading, you know that he knows what he's talking about. Another article by editor Robert Lee Brewer offers good tips on how to be a successful blogger. Then one by Sandra Beasley on straying from the factual truth in poetry—well, I wish I'd written that one. Beasley expresses my own position perfectly. Her piece ends with this gem of wisdom: "At the end of the day, we have only one face. But the masks we can wear are infinite."

Apparently that wasn't enough good news for me, so today I received word that food blogger, Nina Soifer, has included my poem, "Prunis Persica," in today's post, an especially delicious one with tantalizing photos and tempting recipes. The eggplant appetizer just about had me drooling all over my keyboard.  My poem is accompanied by a recipe for Grilled Jersey Peaches. I should mention that Grand Marnier is part of the recipe. How could that not be delicious? Please visit Food for Us, but wear a bib.
This is a new blog which plans to feature food and poetry. I like that combination. Please help to spread the word for Nina.

This has been a good week for my peach poem. Julie L. Moore read the poem for Conrad's Corner on WYSO Radio in Ohio. I previously posted about that, but in case you missed it, here's the media player with poem again.

The Sound of a Peach

Is anything more delicious than a perfectly ripe peach? Maybe having your peach poem read on the radio.

This past Wednesday night poet Julie L. Moore read my poem, "Prunis Persica," from Temptation by Water, on the weekly radio program, "Conrad's Corner," at WYSO in Ohio. Please take a listen:

If you're unable to see the recording above or get it to play (it wouldn't work for me on Firefox, only on Safari), then use this link.

You can also read the poem online at Redheaded Stepchild.

Julie's reading makes me hungry for peach pie or peach ice cream.

Note: If the above media player doesn't work or show up, try this one:

Or this one:
 

PS: I'm experimenting with the media player so any feedback will be appreciated.

Good News Department

Humpty heard that there's a poem about him in this book.
(Photo by Jama Rattigan)

A lovely review of my book, Temptation by Water, appears in the current Harvard Review. Written by Marjorie Tesser, it has completely delighted me! Here's a small sample:

"Lockward is expert at reflecting complexity of emotion; her wry, battle-scarred humor refuses to be vanquished, and some of the angriest poems in the collection are also the funniest. In 'Leaving in Pieces,' a woman whose husband has disappointed her replaces him with a dog. 'It Runs This Deep' begins by quoting a bumper sticker, 'Jesus loves you. / Everyone else thinks you’re an asshole,' and continues, 'But not your mother,' recounting the love she’s lavished on someone who didn’t deserve it in the eyes of the world. The poem conveys a realistic mix of frustration, fury, sarcasm, and stubborn tenderness." Read the rest of the review HERE.

Harvard Review, a print journal, recently moved all reviews online. This change allows them to now publish more reviews and make them available to a wider readership.

Marjorie Tesser is the author of a brand-new chapbook, The Magic Feather, which happens to be sitting on my kitchen table. She is also the editor of The Mom Egg, a print journal dedicated to poetry about motherhood and related themes.

Something else to check out is Adele Kenny's blog, The Music In It. If you're not regularly visiting this blog, start right now! Especially is you're looking for a site that offers regular prompts and instruction about the craft of writing poetry. A new prompt is posted each Saturday. Adele just posted "When Is a Poem Not a Poem?" Five poets, including yours truly, offer some thoughts. And so does Adele, so that makes six poets. Adele is the poetry editor of Tiferet and an outstanding poet with a new book available for pre-orders at Amazon and just about to step over the threshold and enter the world: What Matters, from Welcome Rain Publishers.