From Nothing: Poems

by Anya Krugovoy Silver

In her third collection, "From Nothing," Anya Krugovoy Silver follows a mother, wife, and artist as illness and loss of loved ones disrupt the peaceful flow of life. Grounded in the traditions of meditative and contemplative poetry, From Nothing confronts disease and mortality with the healing possibilities of verse. Whether remembering the sound of whispered secrets on a family vacation or celebrating a favorable PET scan, in Silver's keen observations of seemingly mundane moments we glimpse the divine.

"As she addresses profound questions about how to make meaning out of suffering, Silver's poems attest to the power of art to help us face difficult realities in an often painful world. I'm ransacked by the pain and love and urgency of this book. These aren't pretty, redemptive poems about cancer and loss; they're gritty oracles that divide joint from marrow as we stand before coffins, stillbirths, and mastectomy scars. This is one of few poets just brazen enough to be human. In short, Anya Silver doesn't screw around." Tania Runyan, author of "Second Sky" and "A Thousand Vessels""

Genres: Poetry

80 pages, Paperback

Published September 12, 2016

About the author

Anya Krugovoy Silver was an American poet. She was named Georgia Author of the Year/Poetry for 2015. Silver was recently named a Guggenheim Fellow for Poetry for 2018. She taught in the English Department at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia.

Reviews

[Bethany Winn · Rating 5 out of 5]

FFW. Gorgeous inadvertent discovery. Buy this one.

[Lyndsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like Silver's writing style: uncomplicated (but not in a bad way), elegant, emotive, and relatable. These were poems that you could understand on a first reading, but delve deeper into on a second or third read. I especially enjoyed how Silver relates to her illness and relates to God--you got the sense that she was being terribly honest.

[Lisa Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anya Krugovoy Silver is one of my favorite poets. Her hauntingly beautiful words stay with me, triggering imagery, deep thoughts, memories of my own life. I found myself reading certain poems over again. Anya has a unique voice - one that I've been eagerly searching for.

[Hannah Berg · Rating 5 out of 5]

should be required reading

[Kristiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal collection. A moving exploration of family, grief and what life means when it is suddenly threatened.

[Timothy Lumsdaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poetry shapes you... a raid on the articulate and all that. Read more of it.

[John Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely collection, again tackling the intersection of faith and cancer.

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

8/31

Hmmm... I wanted to like this. But I didn't. It felt a little too straightforward. And I made edits in the margin, which is never a good sign.