Odd Mercy

by Gail Thomas

As the winner of the Charlotte Mew Prize judged by Ellen Bass, the poems in this chapbook focus on a difficult mother/daughter relationship that is further complicated by dementia. The core of the book is a crown of contemporary sonnets in which the last line of each sonnet becomes the first line of the next. Bass writes: " Poetry uses words to convey what is beyond words, to say the unsayable. The last line of Odd Mercy expresses this paradox tenderly as the poet reflects on her mother: 'your words/now gibberish, your voice always in my head.'" These are poems of loss, beauty and reclamation.

44 pages, Paperback

Published November 10, 2016

About the author

Poet and teacher Gail Thomas has published six books: Trail of Roots (2022), Leaving Paradise (2022),Odd Mercy (2016), Waving Back (2015), No Simple Wilderness: An Elegy for Swift River Valley (2001) and Finding the Bear (1997).

Trail of Roots won the A.V. Christie Series of Seven Kitchens Press, Odd Mercy was chosen by Ellen Bass for the Charlotte Mew Prize of Headmistress Press, and its “Little Mommy Sonnets” won Honorable Mention for the Tom Howard/ Margaret Reid Prize for Traditional Verse. Also, Waving Back was named a Must Read for 2016 by the Massachusetts Center for the Book and Honorable Mention in the New England Book Festival.

Thomas’s work has appeared in many journals and anthologies including The Beloit Poetry Journal, Calyx, The North American Review, Hanging Loose, and Valparaiso Poetry Review. Individual poems have won the Naugatuck Review’s Narrative Poetry Prize, the Edward Hearst Prize, and the Pat Schneider Poetry Prize. Several poems have been nominated for Pushcart Prizes, and she was awarded residencies at The McDowell Colony and Ucross.

Her book, No Simple Wilderness, about the creation of the Quabbin Reservoir in the 1930’s has been taught in college courses. As one of the original teaching artists for the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s Elder Arts Initiative, Thomas led workshops and collaborated with dancers, musicians and storytellers in schools, nursing homes, hospitals and libraries across the state.

Thomas teaches poetry with Pioneer Valley Writers’ Workshops, speaks at conferences and poetry festivals, and reads her work widely in community and academic settings.

Reviews

[Terry S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Odd Mercy by Gail Thomas is a gem which holds its beauty between the covers and sparkles when the poems shine in the reader’s mind. Winner of the Charlotte Mew Prize from Headmistress Press (2016), this twenty-two poem collection explores Thomas’ strained relationship with her mother who is “shrinking” from Alzheimer’s. The title comes from the opening poem – “an odd mercy/ rains down on our grey heads.” Full of everyday details and existential meandering, the fine craft of this collection stuns. By the end, there is reconciliation on the part of the daughter, the mother now her “Little Mommy.” The book also explores other family relationships spanning generations and teaches us that memory is all important and memory is all we have. Terry S. Johnson

[Sally Bellerose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bitter- sweet poems about the hard-earned love of a mother -daughter relationship. Beautifully written crown of sonnets that spans a complicated bond over a lifetime. Gorgeous language. Beautiful details.