The Poet's Companion: A Guide to the Pleasures of Writing Poetry

Thoughtful, generous, and accurate to both deeper truths and the craftwork it takes to hold them, The Poet's Companion is a superb guide for the working poet. —Jane Hirshfield

This feels like the book we've been waiting for: rigorous, generous, in love with the art of poetry, aware of the inner architecture of poems-and maybe it couldn't have been written by anyone but Kim Addonizio and Dorianne Laux, two passionate poets. —Marie Howe

Poets Addonizio and Laux warn against cliche, and although textbooks on writing come a dime a dozen these days, theirs is head and shoulders above the rest. There are three main sections: "Subjects for Writing" (e.g. death, the erotic), "The Poet's Craft" (metaphor, rhyme), and "The Writing Life" (self-doubt, writer's block); four separate appendixes list other writing texts, anthologies, marketing tips, and electronic resources. The many exercises offered emerge largely from the intensive one-day workshops conducted by Addonizio and Laux. Both knowledgeable and practical in their approach, the authors offer everything a poet needs, including one feature more necessary than ever in the postliterate age yet absent from other writing texts: a gentle yet insistent lesson on grammar. Highly recommended for all libraries. —David Kirby, Library Journal

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