Isolato (Iowa Poetry Prize)

Rating:
Summary: A Fresh and Original Voice
Review: I enjoyed this book greatly. Unlike most of the books I've read lately by younger poets (so hip and ironic and so fresh from their MFA programs), Szporluk manages to be clever without being pretentious and to write moving poems without being sentimental and ridiculous. I found this book a breath of fresh air.

Rating:
Summary: petty
Review: She forces herself into stylistic extremes to make up for having nothing really to say. Basically all she said in this whole book that was almost interesting to me was that blood is water reddened by desire, & even that isn't so exciting. There are so many modern poets whose writing is far better, for instance such young modernists as Karen Volkman, Brenda Shaughnessy, Robyn Schiff, Joanna Goodman, & many, many others. Unlike Larissa Szporluck, they really say things & do things with their work.

Rating:
Summary: well...
Review: This is not one of my favorite books. From the first few wandering poems, she doesn't seem like a poet of noteworthy vision. There are places in the book where the thinking is very interesting & the thoughts are indeed rewarding for the reader, but most of the poetry here is not wonderful. I do so much work to find interesting thoughts within these poems...& I read so little great merit of hers that's easy to find...that I'm not even sure how much of the reward I get from reading the book is self-generated. I mean you can find interesting thoughts anywhere in you're trying that hard. In any case, it is interesting to read the work of younger poets such as Szporluck to get a glimpse of the poetry of her generation. & it's not a TERRIBLE book. I just don't know how much of a career as a poet she has ahead of her.