Silt

by Erica Wright

Poems.

Genres: Poetry

Chapbook

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Erica Wright is a poet and novelist. Her latest mystery Hollow Bones was called "an incredibly rich work of literature" in the Nashville Scene. Her essay collection Snake is part of Bloomsbury's Object Lessons series and was one of LitReactor 's Best Books of 2020. She’s over the moon to be releasing two books in 2026: the poetry collection A Buyer's Guide to the Afterlife and the mystery The Museum of Unusual Occurrence. She was the poetry editor at Guernica Magazine for more than a decade and currently teaches at Bellevue University. She lives in Knoxville, Tennessee with her family.

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I admit it. I purchased Erica Wright's chapbook Silt because of its cover. Light gray with a simple design -- it looked like a soft, but sturdy read. I didn't know this poet's work until I read Silt -- and I found that the poems inside were sturdy -- in a stubborn, edgy sort of way. But, there was nothing soft about the works.

There's no other way to describe the characters found in Wright's chapbook but to call they surly. Sure of themselves, they are not afraid to take chances. For example, the narrator in "Taking a Punch" explores her life among men. In the opening lines, the persona explains that after her father and uncles install an electric fence she explores the new addition: "When left alone, I threw sticks at it/then grabbed hold, felt my skin snap, released." Later, when she fell from a tree, she listens to a brother who explains, "it would hurt less if I didn't cry." The narrator in this poem seems to take these physical lessons with her for even harder life lessons: "And later when someone I loved/said he didn't and never had, I managed//to nod, numb myself until morning/when I learned that whiskey's a lousy anesthesia."

Not only are the characters not afraid to take chances, but the poet herself is not afraid to use uncommon metaphors to explore life's events. For example, in "Anniversary of Sorts" the narrator uses a messy house (with such images as "caked cough syrup bottles" and a "garage floor dirty despite the brooms" to explain the darker life of marriage and family and note "There are some places/not meant to be clean for very long." In another poem, "Night Sweat" the speaker trades descriptions of physical discomfort for more emotional distress: "My body, assassin, is a night hunter/makes me see serpents."

Wright's chapbook is a recent purchase I made from dancing girl press. As I noted, I was not familiar with her work. I now consider her one to watch.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A particular favorite was "How to Take a Punch."

I thought, in particular, she had great control and pace to her endings.

couched in a country witched with miscarriage (7)

[M Delea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my 27th book for #TheSealeyChallenge. It's a chapbook of 18 poems, put out by dancing girl press.

Quite different from the chapbook I read the day before--this one is not a linear narrative, but has consistencies in tone and place. All of the poems are free verse in stanzas. The prevailing topic is relationships of all kinds, and how complicated and both good and bad they can be.

The first poem (just like the previous chapbook!) pulled me in right away. I have a weak spot for poems that ask questions, and this poem, entitled "Note to Slip in Your Pocket, Never Slipped," has 4 questions. It also gets you into the collection's place (physical, mental, emotional).

Other poems I really like include Fording Calfkiller Creek, The Instructional, Silt, My Mother's Flirtation with Spirit Photography, and Woolgathering. (Another poetry book with great titles!)

A few of my favorite bits:

"Near enough to hear the rough language
of men . . . "
--Taking a Punch

"You fantasize scenes of collapse,
but know you will shudder the sorrow home."
--Reservoir

"I have the air of an heiress tonight . . . "
--On Having Forgotten the Exact Shape of Your Mouth

"Wolves and wayward girls
end up here, one way or another."
--Hunting Woods

I definitely recommend!