Why the Ships Are She

by Terri Ford

This new book of poems, a Stahlecker Series selection from Four Way Books, contains works that fiirst appeared in Agni; Crania; Conduit; Forklift, Ohio; Incliner; Kumquat Meringue; Licking River Review; Marlboro Review; The Plastic Tower; Southern Poetry Review; Warren Wilson Review; and in the anthology The Beach A Literary Companion (Sarabande Books, 1999).

Genres: Poetry

80 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, a decent collection of poetry that had some spikes of brilliance scattered throughout. I really want to give it 4 stars, but I personally felt that some of the poems felt like fillers in a way. That said, when she hits, she hits hard. There's a good sense of humor woven throughout though she deals with some serious issues.

There were several poems that I really liked. My favorite by far, was BP Station Employee Restroom, 2 a.m. If all of the poems in this book were this good, it would have easily gotten 5 stars from me.

The strange thing about that poem is that I have an incredibly strong memory of reading it somewhere before, but can't place it at all. It doesn't seem to be in any anthologies at all, but I am absolutely certain that I read it quite some time ago. Weird thing, but it is really setting me on edge for some reason... Odd.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terri is a funny smart poetess. she is like a modern willie shakespeare as she requires you to experience the words and phrases anew, and like reading Shakespeare, you begin to feel the undertow of Ford's current, and understand that you have replaced your ship with she while in the spell of her poems.

[SmarterLilac · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the more insightful poetry collections I've read; Terri Ford is a master of illuminating the unseen.