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Animals the Size of Dreams
As a psychologist, Lisa C. Krueger is familiar with digging into what makes us human. The joys and celebrations or the pain of what cuts the skin—and what cuts deeper. In animals the size of dreams, Krueger looks into the dark corners and, instead of just shining a light, strips them down to their foundations, until all that’s left is life.
- GenresPoetry
112 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2009
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
August 25, 2015
From the fretting of a mother over the mortality of her child to the realm of the psychologist addressing her own role in the clinical setting of her work, these poems were feminine feminine and feminine.
This is a knitting circle discussion text on motherhood, the role of a woman, girlhood, domesticity, and a touch of the new age.
I'm not saying it was horrible. Krueger does try to tap into the heartbreak of cancer, death, and the pain and fear of loss -- women friends, a child, and even a case of a teenage girl suffering from self-mutilation.
But (and there is a but), so much of the language rhetorically disappointed me. Images of a ballerina child who no longer dances. Flowers blooming on gnarled branches and summer rain. Earth, sky, and wind.
Haven't I heard this like five hundred million times before?
Plus, the construction of some phrases and the placement of words were not very effective:
look beyond
bed
the body
her face
a mirror
my eyes sky
hers earth
*end*
Krueger is definitely channeling some ethnic storytelling vibes here (like a Native American myth or creation legend), through maintaining the present tense and metaphorically referring to herself and her daughter in terms of natural elements, but this is nothing extraordinary. Most of the poems are written in reference to themes within a modern context. There isn't much weight placed on the ancient or on some cultural factor that would help me buy into this as a Native American myth or story, which may not be what she intended anyway. So for me, there's a bit of a disconnect in her minimalist approach in the use of words as a device in modality and tone.
There were pleasanter moments, but I think I'm ready to move onto something that really tickles my neurons and/or pushes my buttons.
This is a knitting circle discussion text on motherhood, the role of a woman, girlhood, domesticity, and a touch of the new age.
I'm not saying it was horrible. Krueger does try to tap into the heartbreak of cancer, death, and the pain and fear of loss -- women friends, a child, and even a case of a teenage girl suffering from self-mutilation.
But (and there is a but), so much of the language rhetorically disappointed me. Images of a ballerina child who no longer dances. Flowers blooming on gnarled branches and summer rain. Earth, sky, and wind.
Haven't I heard this like five hundred million times before?
Plus, the construction of some phrases and the placement of words were not very effective:
look beyond
bed
the body
her face
a mirror
my eyes sky
hers earth
*end*
Krueger is definitely channeling some ethnic storytelling vibes here (like a Native American myth or creation legend), through maintaining the present tense and metaphorically referring to herself and her daughter in terms of natural elements, but this is nothing extraordinary. Most of the poems are written in reference to themes within a modern context. There isn't much weight placed on the ancient or on some cultural factor that would help me buy into this as a Native American myth or story, which may not be what she intended anyway. So for me, there's a bit of a disconnect in her minimalist approach in the use of words as a device in modality and tone.
There were pleasanter moments, but I think I'm ready to move onto something that really tickles my neurons and/or pushes my buttons.
Displaying 1 of 1 review