Florida Poems

by Campbell McGrath

Book Overview

Part fable, part diatribe, part elegy, part love song, this extraordinary fifth collection by Campbell McGrath makes poetry of the most unlikely of materials -- his home state of Florida. While at times poignantly personal, McGrath also returns for the first time to the characteristically comic and visionary public voice displayed in the renowned Bob Hope Poem. Moving effortlessly from prehistory to the space age, he catalogues Florida's natural...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060527366
• ISBN13: 9780060527365
• Release Date: February 2003
• Publisher: Ecco Press
• Length: 112 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.3" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Mickey Mouse Stomps Chuckey Cheese

Regional collections of poetry can often be so narrow that only people that are from or living in that region can appreciate. However, McGrath's "Florida Poems" is an exception. Perhaps it is because Florida is a state that most Americans visit at some point, even if it is just to visit Disney, McGrath doesn't just show the beautiful side of the state or only the ugly side of it either, but a beautiful coherent combination of both. Not only is the colonization of Florida explored, occasionally lamented, but readers step inside Chucky Cheese's and the geography of Florida itself. While there are two long poems in this collection, they are well worth reading, and especially the first one, "A City in Clouds" provides, if not retells, a myth of Florida. I especially enjoyed "William Bartram Beset by Crocodiles," "Hemingway Dines on Boiled Shrimp and Beer," and "Trouble With Miami." I previously read "Road Atlas" just before this collection, which is another book I would highly recommend. So even if you never set foot in Florida itself, "Florida Poems" is an excellent way to visit Florida from the bookshelf.