Ranking the Wishes

by Carl Dennis

Book Overview

In his seventh book, Carl Dennis explores the ways in which our wishes - those in our power to fulfill at any moment and those that have no chance of ever being realized - define who we are. While some of the poems view wishing as a failure to do justice to the world we have, others regard it as a recognition that no present, however rich, can satisfy the imagination, and suggest that one of the functions of poetry is to keep significant wishes alive...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140587799
• ISBN13: 9780140587791
• Release Date: June 1997
• Publisher: Penguin Books
• Length: 96 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.5" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

A Wonderful Poet and Teacher

Not only is Carl Dennis a great poet, he's a great teacher as well. In fact, I took one of his creative writing classes at Buffalo. This series of poems stands by itself for its modesty and simple eloquence. He casts each of his poems in an aura of optimism, despite the tragedies and frustrations. He teaches us to savor the beauty of moments and recollections. My favorite is a meditative poem called "Sarit Narai," where the author remembers an accident at Niagara Falls while taking a stroll, and imagines what could've been. Read this book if you enjoy short stories and vignettes, especially those of Raymond Carver and Andre Dubus. You will be mesmerized by the power of this book.

Great

If you like poetry that doesn't speak in a private hyper-literary language, this is for you. (Even if you do like that other kind, this is a welcome break.) Carl Dennis seems to follow some of the traditions of Raymond Carver in that the poems are almost prose-like in their directness. This helps the poems do what poems should--take everyday occurrences, stories, or emotions, or wishes, and deepen them. These are beautiful.