Corbett's strength is his simple language and simple appreciation of what language can do. The landscapes, both internal and external, are faithfully rendered, vividly real: "My eyes liked to rest/ on that blue flecked peagray/ porcelain pot now smashed/ after the kitten's clunky leap/brought a thick book down." This attention to detail lends veracity to the narratives as well. "In socks and underwear/we're less flesh than smells." As important as this precision, sound contributes to every phrase. Few poets of our times attend so well to the ear; the internal rhyme and assonance are a pleasure. If these devices are the marks of an "older tradition," certainly the range of subject matter attests to Corbett as a man of his time. Literature, history, and philosophical musings mesh within quiet stories, scenes from everyday life. The title insists that we notice the things around us, even the "rough and vulgar." -- amazon.com
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