Having just come to Anne Carson in a big way due to a poet friend who swears by her, I was ready to be amazed. And I was. Her language in re-telling the tale of the slain monster Geryon, her deadpan humor, her references to the classics we read as children and have mostly forgotten, awakened in me a sense of childhood awe at her staggering talent. Fusing poetry, the novel, essay and autobiography seamlessly in 'Autobiography of Red' (which I just finished one hour ago), Carson has leapt to the forefront of poets in my estimation. Alienation, sadness, betrayal, they all hold sway over the winged creature/boy/man Geryon and his struggle to be whole/real. I am a convert. Anne Carson is a blazingly original talent and in this world of predictable poetry what could be higher praise? Read her and delight in the elasticity of literature in its highest form: poetry.
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
(9 of 17 readers found this comment helpful)
timkjazz has commented on (1) product.
Autobiography of Red: A Novel in Verse (Vintage Contemporaries) by Anne Carson
timkjazz, September 19, 2006
Having just come to Anne Carson in a big way due to a poet friend who swears by her, I was ready to be amazed. And I was. Her language in re-telling the tale of the slain monster Geryon, her deadpan humor, her references to the classics we read as children and have mostly forgotten, awakened in me a sense of childhood awe at her staggering talent. Fusing poetry, the novel, essay and autobiography seamlessly in 'Autobiography of Red' (which I just finished one hour ago), Carson has leapt to the forefront of poets in my estimation. Alienation, sadness, betrayal, they all hold sway over the winged creature/boy/man Geryon and his struggle to be whole/real. I am a convert. Anne Carson is a blazingly original talent and in this world of predictable poetry what could be higher praise? Read her and delight in the elasticity of literature in its highest form: poetry.(9 of 17 readers found this comment helpful)