The Wheel

by Wendell Berry

Elegiac poems explore the cycle of birth, life, and death and examine the author's personal experiences

Genres: Poetry, Nature

Paperback

First published November 1, 1982

About the author

Wendell Berry was a conservationist, farmer, essayist, novelist, professor of English and poet. Closely identified with rural Kentucky, Berry developed many of his agrarian themes in the early essays of The Gift of Good Land (1981) and The Unsettling of America (1977). His attention to the culture and economy of rural communities is also found in the novels and stories of Port William, such as A Place on Earth (1967), Jayber Crow (2000), and That Distant Land (2004).

Berry was an elected member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers, a recipient of the National Humanities Medal and the Jefferson Lecturer for 2012. He was also a 2013 Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and, from 2014 to his death, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Berry was named the recipient of the 2013 Richard C. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award. On January 28, 2015, he became the first living writer to be inducted into the Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame.

abridged from Wikipedia.

Reviews

[Tony Roberts]

If an alien were to land in Northern Kentucky and want to know more about his neighbors, the first person I would introduce him to is Wendell Berry. Berry is a farmer-poet, an educator-essayist, a story telling conservationist who celebrates creation while still honoring the Creator.

Much like Berry's other poetical works, this collection contains an earthy spirituality. Berry is at his best when he is remembering his neighbors, whom he loves deeply. This is quite evident at the end of his poem, "Requiem":

Now may the grace of death
be upon him, his spirit blessed
in deep song of the world
and the stars turning, the seasons
returning, and long rest.

[Duane Gosser]

I rarely read poetry. I need to be in a certain mindset that I seldom visit. The stars/planets aligned as I was such a mood when I walked past this book on display at the library. As a native Kentuckian, I certainly know of Wendell Berry but am ashamed to say I had never read any of his poetry. Having had this particular collection recommended by both friends and family, I took a chance that a native son could reach me with his works. Boy was I right. For such a small collection, I was astounded at how many of the poems touched me and brought thoughts and memories to me in sometimes overwhelming waves. His love and connection to the land, family, and history is a treasure. I can't recommend this more enthusiastically.

[Elizabeth]

“The best teachers teach more
than they know. By their deaths
they teach most. They lead us beyond
what we know, and what they knew.”
—excerpt from The Elergy (1982)

“Sitting among the bluebells
in my sorrow, for lost time
and the never forgotten dead,
I saw a hummingbird stand
in air to drink from flowers.
It was a kiss he took and gave.
At his lightness and the ardor
of his throat, the song I live by
stirred my mind. I said:
‘By sweetness alone it survives.’”
—excerpt from The Strait

“We are what we are given
and what is taken away;
blessed be the name
of the giver and taker.
For everything that comes
is a gift, the meaning always
carried out of sight
to renew our whereabouts,
always a starting place.
And every gift is perfect
in its beginning, for it
is ‘from above, and cometh down
from the Father of lights.’”
—excerpt from The Gift of Gravity

*New Collected Poems (2012)

[Sanjuro]

In the running for my favorite among Berry's poetry collections. The first few poems are especially powerful. The collection focuses on the cycle of life, or, "The Wheel," - the process of birth, growth, maturity, death, decay, and decay feeding new life all over again. The dead inform the living, which feeds on the land and the wisdom that came before it. Some of the earlier poems will get you to think about life and death in fresh ways.

[Jonathan Freeman]

These poems were beautiful, but not necessarily the most ADHD-friendly (in my experience).

For some reason it just consistently seemed to take extra effort for me to focus on and appreciate them appropriately, compared to a lot of the other poetry I've been reading and enjoying lately. The writing is still magnificent though, and if you're neurotypical, you may get more of a 5-star experience out of this book than I did.

[ANNA fayard]

“Elegy” — “Their eyes, having grieved all grief, were clear”

“Our Children, Coming of Age” — “When you meet the destined ones / now dancing toward you, / we will be in line behind you, / out of awareness for the time, / we whom you know, others we remember, / whom you do not remember, others / forgotten by us all”

[Wayne]

The last of a series of Berry’s poetry volumes I’ve been immersed in. Having recently moved back to the country, the poems came at the perfect time. and another meditation on the land, community, family, and our place in the circle of life. Wendell Berry gives much and is always worth the time.

[Dwayne Coleman]

Very good poetry.

[Jordan Kinsey]

One wonders if Maslanka knew the works of Berry, for there is definitely a fair share of the “powerful voice of the Earth” in this slim volume of poems. The first few, also, ate about my father.

[Shannon]

"The song will tell/how old love sweetens the fields." This is my second encounter with Wendell Berry, securing me as an admirer of his work for life. The Wheel explores the circle of life and death - in the individual, in the human race - and the convergence of the living and the dead in brief moments. In "Elegy," Berry has a dreamlike encounter with a deceased friend, and in "The Dance" he summons his people in an ancient circle of dancing, recalling loved ones in the communal festivity. Berry is down-to-earth and real; his poetry is beautiful, yet devoid of sentimentalism or lofty allusions. I would recommend this collection to anyone.

[Mark Nenadov]

Sixty pages of poetry that is simple, very accessible, and yet quite powerful.

[Samantha]

Beautiful.

[C. Noah Baoas]

Best enjoyed on rainy days, in a quiet space, next to a window!