The Evolution of the Flightless Bird

Yale Series of Younger Poets

by Richard Kenney

Richard Kenney's The Evolution of the Flightless Bird , the winning volume in the 1983 Yale Series of Younger Poets competition, was selected from among 650 entries in this annual competition. All of one species whose origin is the sonnet, Kenney's poems ring many changes through that form, reflecting, as they do, a personal evolution in the poet's life. "The Hours of the Day"―the first of four chapters―is a long meditative sequence set in Vermont; here the square-shaped poems become the crown glass windowpanes of the farmhouse itself. "First Poems" follows next, a group of eight lyrics, ending with the poem that titles the book. "Heroes," a narrative quartet, with two poems from history and two from life, concerns itself with the shaping of all tales, from source to first telling. Finally, "Notes from Greece" chronicles certain thoughts and adventures there, notably a visit to the Byzantine monastic communities that ring the peninsula of Mt. Athos. Born in Glens Falls, New York, in 1948, Richard Kenney received his B.A. from Dartmouth College in 1970. His poems have appeared in numerous magazines, including The New Yorker , The Atlantic Monthly , Hudson Review , American Scholar , Poetry , The Yale Review , Carolina Quarterly , and New England Review .

Genres: Poetry

84 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1984

About the author

Richard L. Kenney (born 1948) is a poet and professor of English. Kenney and his family live in Port Townsend, Washington.

He is the author of four books of poetry: The Evolution of the Flightless Bird, Orrery, The Invention Of The Zero, and The One-Strand River: Poems, 1994-2007.

After graduating from Dartmouth College in 1970, Kenney won a Reynolds Fellowship and studied Celtic lore in Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. He teaches in the English department at the University of Washington and has published in many magazines and journals, including The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, and The American Scholar.

Drawing from many great writers and thinkers throughout time, Kenney often includes references to them in his works. James Merrill influenced him the most, and, fittingly so, his third book, The Invention of the Zero, is dedicated to him. Other notable influences include W.B. Yeats, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Robert Lowell, and Philip Larkin.

Known for having an avalanching and original style, James Merrill best sums it up in his foreword to The Evolution of the Flightless Bird:

"The poetic wheels just spin and spin, getting nowhere fast. But Kenney--it's what one likes best about him--nearly always has an end in view, a story to tell."

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Also read this during my recent trip to L.A., as an antidote to the mindlessness & stupefying traffic that surrounded me. What can I say? This is RK at his best. Beautiful sonnets; arresting & smart imagery; lots of science & philosophy, history, religion & nature...brilliant.

[Fernando Duenas · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good!!! Also recommend Other stuff by him.