Something Shining

by Daniel Halpern

Widely praised for his earlier collections Daniel Halpern has grown steadily in stature and attainment. Now, with Something Shining, his first collection of new poems in seven years, he gives us an ambitious, wide ranging meditation on birth, love, and maturity, marking a turning point in both his life and his work. These beautifully crafted poems explore relations between lovers, between friends, between fathers and children. Written by the light of a young daughters presence, and the distinctive lyrical language that Ted Hughes described as “so free and effortless and unerring” these poems ponder the fading of the body and the Struggle that consciousness wages to keep the self afloat. And into this intimate world also enter a surprising array of ancient Chinese poets and modern Cuban musicians, Charlie Parker, Chekhov , and the dervish mystic Rumi.

Genres: Poetry

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Kasandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

These poems show an exquisite eye for detail and are crystal-clear with mature understanding; many of them cover aging and loss, but the overall feel of the book is hopeful and delicate, thankful for life and its idiosyncracies and inevitabilities. I particularly enjoyed the poems "Real Estate", "Infestation", "Hungry as Dogs", http://books.google.com/books?id=ZH3g... (you can see others of these poems here as well)
"A Place to Eat", "Desperadoes", and "Beauty and Restraint", but nearly every piece in the book had something to say to me about what being human means, and about the details we choose to hold onto even as death comes closer. Great work.