That Country’s Soul by Richard Levine

I think you’ll be exhilarated — toengross yourself in (you won’t be able to simply skim) the work of Richard Levine in his new book, That Country’s Soul, from Finishing Line Press.  The”country” of the book’s ambiguous title is not some other nation but thecountry that opposes or at least stands way outside of town.  The interval between Levine’sobserving or registering and notating his impressions seems uncannilyimmediate — his participation in nature’s density jumps off the pagewhile ensnaring you in its virtual silence — and the result is agroup of twenty poems that, for the most part, convey the powerful atmosphereof woods and streams in ways that would have done Emerson proud.  I choose that name with care (the boldness ofWhitman came sooner to mind; see the final poem, “Jacob’s Ladder Aslant”)because uniting these poems is a transcendentalism that approaches but steersclear of religion, beautifully articulated in “Believe This.”  Whether in the formal structure of avillanelle (“Owl Creek Credo”) or in looser forms, Levine’s poems are expertlycrafted, yet his skillful line breaks and delightful wordplay don’t dilutetheir considerable ambition.  In thisimpressive little collection, variety of style is matched by unity of theme andpurpose: as the author says in the last line of a neat little poem (“You Don’tMiss Your Water”) about animal metaphors (“slyas a fox,” etc.), “Surely, poetry lives or dies with the flora and fauna.”According to the “Acknowledgments” page, just over half the poems in this bookhave appeared in journals; that’s a goodly proportion, but considering theiroverall quality, I am surprised that it isn’t higher.

–Martin Mitchell, Editor, Pivot, Rattapallax, guest Editor, BigCityLit, TheSame