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Imagine, if you will, a tough, ex-Marine, a war veteran, with the romantic heart of Shakespeare, a modern-day knight who’s tarnished armor reflects the soul of Hemingway.  Bind these inconsistencies into the skin and bones of a man, put a pen in his hand and you have Harvey E. Stanbrough, the author of this exceptional collection of poetry.

It is easy to see why Stanbrough has been nominated for the 1999 Pulitzer prize in poetry.  Unlike so much modern poetry which can sometimes  seem  pretentious and pompous,  Stanbough’s verse is easy to understand and lets the reader relate to each poem.  He makes us say, “Yes.  I know how that feels.” or “Boy, this is true.”  He speaks to us of feelings, of love and hate, of peace and war, of life and death, of the joys and sorrows of having children and grandchildren, and all the myriad images and problems we are assailed with daily in our modern world.

He tempers death with birth, despair with humor, everyday life with the exotic.  Much of his work, such as “Residua” leads us to examine our inner selves and realize how small we human beings really are compared to the universe.  Yet other poems poke fun at us for taking ourselves too seriously as in “This Will Be Easy to Read” in which the poet regales us with “...and deeper, hidden meanings.  Who needs that when all around is chaos?”

We see the horror of war through the warrior’s eyes, the power of love through the lover’s eyes and the wonder of childhood through the child’s eyes in this collection of outstanding poetry.

Stanbrough uses humor, nostalgia, and just plain truth to entertain, amuse and sometimes frighten us.   I highly recommend this book to everyone, even people who do not ordinarily read poetry.  I think you will find LESSONS FOR A BARREN POPULATION touches you, no matter who you are.  Stanbrough is, in my opinion, this generation’s Robert Frost, so don’t miss this one.

ATHENS AVENUE
A collection of Poetry
From The Athens Avenue Poetry Circle
(Funky Dog Publishing, PO Box 321, Warren, Michigan 48090-0321
$9.95 U.S.B$12.95 Canada/Australia)
Review by S. Joan Popek

This collection of poetry is dedicated "To Poets Who Dream" and it lives up to it's dedication.  If you are a lover of fine poetry you will find this book a treasure.  Perfect bound with a glossy cover and exquisite cover art, the book offers verse with a look at life from birth to death and in some cases, beyond death.  It transports us from culture to culture, from past time to lost time to present time, from mortality to immortality.  We even experience nature from its own unique point of view.

Striking imagery and vibrant, mental brush strokes paint a world of poetic magic.  The poetry is sometimes sad, sometimes sweet, sometimes frightening, but always intriguing.  I was struck with the beauty of rhyme and rhythm as well as delightful phrases that say so much in so few words.  Phrases like this one in Doug Tanoury's poem, "Under An Ash," where he penned as part of this beautiful work:

"...God so loves creating beauty
He trades whole lifetimes
For splendid seconds..."

This collection was written by some very talented poets, some of whom have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, and all are members of Athens Avenue, an Internet poetry collective.  If you love deep, sensuous verse, this book is for you.  For more delightful verse, you may visit Athens Avenue Poetry Circle at: http://www.geocities.com/Athens/6915/

Intimations of the Shapes of Things
By Harvey Stanbrough
A collection of poetry $12.95
WJM Press, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania
ISBN 1-886467-95-0 (elec. book / PDF)
Distributed by HarMona Press
PO Box 370, Pittsboro, IN 46167, hmpeditor@hotmail.com http://www.hstanbrough.com
Review by S. Joan Popek

Stanbrough's poetry makes me ashamed to be a part of the human race, yet proud to be human; sad that I do not share his dreams, yet relieved that I do not live his nightmares; happy that I am alive, yet mournful that others greater than I are not. Stanbrough's poetry forces us to face the horror of humanity's dark face and the divinity of our inner selves.

When he asked me to review his newest collection of poetry, I was both overjoyed and hesitant to offer my opinion of the work of this long time friend, mentor and personal nemesis of mine. His mastery of verse is sometimes overwhelming and at the same time exhilarating and earthy. How can one poem be all of these things? You must read this book to understand the depth of this poet's soul.

INTIMATIONS is one of the most compelling books of poetry available today. If you don't like looking at yourself in the mirror, this book might scare you. It will make you see your true self. But, if you don't read it, you will miss one of the greatest literary experiences of your lifetime.

Unlike much of today's modern poetry which rambles and is hard to understand, the poetry in INTIMATIONS strikes your brain and your heart like a thunderbolt. You will find no floral, syrupy-sweet words in this collection, but you will find truth.  This poet's vision and biting wit can make you cringe while begging for more.

I will let his own words tell the tale with excerpts from this outstanding collection. Stanbrough visits our hopes and dreams, then takes us to the depths of depression. For instance, in "On Wishes and Stars," he writes:

"In all the heavens, there must be a star
somewhere willing to grant a wish . . . .
And if, in all the heavens, not one star
will grant the wish that issues from your heart,
what then? Will you back into some depression,
draw a stony look around yourself
and scowl for the sake of looking sad?"

He tells us about the agony of writing and living in "Intimations of the
Shapes of Things."

"Because we've grown too fond of our own shape
(This image of a mirror-hugging fool)
We've grasped the pencil‚ til it's gone to stub,
Become a less-than-accurate rendition
Of the world. We've written nothing new..."

He writes about Mankind's inhumanity to man and his home, then he offers hope in  "Something Soft and Kind."

"Something soft and kind, perhaps a smile,
will flutter through your day, release a joy
in your direction, perhaps soften the blow
of lives lost, remorse recounted, time."

Then just when you are feeling insignificant in the grand scheme of things, he makes you laugh.

"Sex
is made at once more precious and desired
by our apparent lack of ability
to nail it down--that is, to locate it--
with any degree of regularity."

And this master of verse concludes with a glimmer of things to come with "Some Future Home." The last stanza reads:

"...Believe in this
and seed the cosmos with the soul of man."

If you enjoyed Stanbrough's previous collection, LESSONS FOR A BARREN POPULATION from Hardshell Word Factory, you know what I'm talking about when I say this is no ordinary poet. If you haven't, then you must have this collection. Even if you say you don't read much poetry, once you read this powerful, stimulating work, you will be hooked. I promise you that!

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