Hail, The Invisible Watchman

by Alexandra Oliver

In Sherbert Lake, middle-class aspirations mask currents of cruelty and bigotry—but even the rulers can't stop the creep of unseen forces, and dread stirs under their feet. Elsewhere, an upper-middle class family grapples with cycles of addiction and abuse that threaten to atomize their bonds and their legacy entirely. And when a schoolgirl befriends an older divorcee, their growing intimacy draws her family's attention. In Hail, The Invisible Watchman, Alexandra Oliver conjures out of eerie atmospheres the chilling social dilemmas of our time.

Genres: Poetry

79 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 5, 2022

Reviews

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crisp sonnets with crackling, surprising rhymes and schemes serve up seemingly innocuous domestic scenes with despair and menace lurking beneath. But something fierce, defiant and transcendent also melds these tightly orchestrated lines. These are intensely compressed stories of survival in the spirit of Ethel Wilson, whose Hetty Dorval informs the third section of this collection - and Alice Munro.

[Kris (My Novelesque Life) · Rating 5 out of 5]

RATING: 5 STARS
2022; Biblioasis

I loved Hail, the Invisible Watchman! This collection of poetry begs to be read slowly and reread some poems more than once...or twice. I have to say my love of Alexandra Oliver's poetry grew when I saw her live the summer of 2022. When I read Let the Empire Down I was a bit unsure of the poems as I did not get the tone (or at least, that is what I discovered after Oliver's reading). When I heard Oliver read and talk about her poems, and something clicked. I read Meeting the Tormentors in Safeway and I could not wait to read this book (which I had requested before I even went to the reading). Oliver's dry wit, humour and observations are just so lovely and at the same time have me saying "Ha!" and "Ah!" out loud. I will also add that I would classify this as (so called) "Canadian writing" in that there is tone, that maybe only I see that just screams Canadian writer. I am (im)patiently waiting for Oliver's next book.

***I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from the publisher through Edelweiss. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.***

[Abigail · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve read all three of Mrs. Oliver’s works, this being the latest, and all I can say is if you’re about to read this book, you’re in for a treat! The way she mixes the tranquil flow of words through her poems with delightfully dismal humor is like an abstract painting that you can read. If you enjoyed reading Hail, The Invisible Watchman, you should definitely put the rest of her books on your reading list!

[Peggy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deep, thoughtful, intriguing, heart-wrenching. These poems bring you to a place of reflection and consideration. "The Lipstick Effect" is one where, if you know, you know.

[Dan Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best collection of current poetry in the English language. To emulate Ezra Pound in his description of T.S. Eliot, that is all that needs to be said, but since I am no Ezra Pound, perhaps a few words are necessary to explain why Oliver is, maybe, the new T.S. Eliot. That reason is authenticity. And a piercing desire to claw at everything that is pretentious. Oliver is a master of exposing perfume as poison, the glitter made of asbestos, the seemingly beautiful toxicity that poses as glamour. I will never get tired of this collection. She is the best contemporary poet working today.

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not a poem person...

[August Bourré · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very accomplished, from a technical perspective, just not my scene.