This book is appropriately subtitled, "The Sabbath Poems 1979-1997." For that is what this volume contains: the meditations and response of a poet taking time apart from the rush of the day to reflect on his place in the world, the value of work, loving relationships, and the unmerited blessing he enjoys.
As a farmer living in rural Kentucky, Wendell Berry maintains a vital connection with the earth and its creatures. He recognizes the cycle of life and death, not as an interruption, but a natural passing into renewed existence. These Sabbath poems read like contemporary wisdom literature (written in everyday language) in the vein of Job, Ecclesiastes, Psalms, Proverbs, and Song of Solomon.
For my part as a city dweller, I was refreshed by Berry's pastoral perspective. These poems can be read one-a-day, almost like a devotional giving pause for reflection; or they can be read equally well in chunks, to gain a sense of the ebb and flow within a year of life experience. His sensitivity to the sound of words guarantees musicality and internal echoes, even in the poems which don't have obvious end-rhymes.
In modern American society -- characterized by busyness, creative destruction, modernization, and instant gratification -- this kind of poetry is necessary, like salt. To preserve that which is good, to enhance the simple pleasures, and to wake up those who are half asleep.
Buy a copy for yourself, and savor it for weeks or months. Then buy a copy for someone you care about. They'll deeply thank you.
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David Dean
High quality, accessible verse and greatly thought-provoking, written in an easy and light style.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 9, 2019