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Reviews
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Of Weathers Permitting, John Hollander writes:
“Stephen Sandy's lovely new book confirms his position
among the important poets of his generation and reveals once
again the intense clarity of his language at all levels. In
particular, it confronts us with the originality of his mode
of meditative narrative unfolding with the rhythms of thought
in poems like 'Natural History: A Barn,' 'Bottleshard,' 'Halloween
Away,' 'Above Como,' and the eclogue-like 'Shutters.' Throughout
this book rural matters are considered with a profound, rather
than a light, urbanity—an urbanity of intellect and diction
and authoritative rhythmic control—sprung from thoughts
and feelings deeply interfused.” |
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Pulitzer Prize winning poet Henry Taylor:
“Stephen Sandy strikes his own sturdy balance between
the world lovingly observed and the language lovingly apprehended.
Among many splendid poems here, see 'Shutters' as a powerful
example. It hovers tautly between calm and something close
to violence, between speaking and keeping silent, peacefully
holding at bay the likely explosion. Elsewhere, with equal
aplomb, Mr. Sandy cracks strings of words like whips, as when
he rhymes 'loiter' and 'reconnoiter.' This is a wonderful
book.” |
| Gerald Stern:
“By this time, Stephen Sandy’s voice is recognizable
at once, its intelligent, wry, quality, whether in a small
perfect lyric like ‘Iris’ or a longer, more narrative
poems like, ‘Bottleshard’ and ‘Natural History.’
He is simultaneously old-fashioned and experimental, a very
special combination.” |
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Rachel Hadas:
“Oracular birds fly like leitmotifs through the troubled
skies of this moody and masterful collection. Here are the
countryman’s clear-eyed observations, and darkly tinged
reflections on mortality. Throughout, Sandy’s language
is freighted and resonant with meaning, utterly unsentimental,
and deceptively simple, like the worn tools or shards he brings,
in these poems, to disquieting light.” |
Reviews of other works
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