Body Of Water by Susan Bruce

Susan Bruce writes “The rough sea says look at yourself,” and that is exactly what Body of Water urges the reader to do. This collection of poetry pulls at the self, as if an undertow pulls at whatever is in its grip. Entrust yourself to this speaker; the sea is bigger than all of us. In this first collection, poems of giving yourself up to something larger than the self are at play in an ebb and flow of lyrical beauty.

–Leah Umansky: Author of Domestic Uncertainties (VOX, 2013) and chapbook Don Dreams, I Dream (Kattywompus Press, 2014)

Rating: ***** [5 of 5 Stars!]

.
Susan Bruce’s poems are inviting, vital and unpredictable environments, like a sea in which are “buried fireworks.” Her collection Body of Water is commotional, immersive and relentlessly inquiring. And because “not everything makes it/into the kingdom of the next day,” I recommend you read this today.

–Christina Davis: Author of Forth A Raven (Alice James Books, 2006) and An Ethic (Nightboat Books, 2013) Christina currently serves as
curator of The Woodberry Poetry Room at Harvard University.

Rating:  ***** [5 of 5 Stars!]

I am meant for life and I am meant for death,” says Water in Susan Bruce’s delightful book. In this, it’s just like us. The poet interrogates the element we are born from, live with, are made of. Its an interrogation that honors the complexity of our relationship to water and shows a happy willingness to find joy in the most fundamental experiences. After all, she says, truly, “Water is the only way.” These poems are clear as water, just as dangerous, just as refreshing.

–Kathleen Ossip Author of The Cold War (Sarabande Books, 2011), The Do- Over (Sarabande Books, 2014), The Search Engine (Copper
Canyon Press, 2002) Cinephrastics (Horse Less Press, 2006)

Rating:  ***** [5 of 5 Stars!]