Why I Wake Early: New Poems
by Mary Oliver
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Book Summary Information
Author: Mary OliverEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-04-15
ISBN: 0807068799
Number of pages: 88
Publisher: Beacon Press
Book Reviews of Why I Wake Early: New Poems
Book Review: Mary Oliver - Naturalist and Poet
Summary: 5 Stars
In her book "Why I Wake Early", Mary Oliver delivers a collection of poems that are deeply inspired by the natural world as a macrocosm that is eternally beautiful as it unfolds around us and delivers a munificently generous bounty that we so often take for granted. In her verse, Oliver speaks of the timelessness of our world that she is captivated by as it was born before man and will more than likely continue after his demise. In her poem "Bone", Oliver's description of the ocean's endless currents and tides that are endlessly "unfolding over and over / its time-ridiculing roar" suggests a sort of perpetual motion that is rhythmic and beautiful in its simplicity. Her description of the sun in "Why I Wake Early" the author describes a beneficent star that serves to warm and delight all of the earth's inhabitants; whether she believes they are deserving or not; "And the windows of, even, / the Miserable and the crotchety -," as a gift that must be appreciated by all creatures because it provides not only life, but the stuff of happiness.
Oliver's work appears to reflect her direct observation of the natural world around her and how each creature plays a role in its development as it unfolds. In "Song of Builders", Oliver sits on a hillside to contemplate God in the natural theatre of outdoors when she spots a single cricket as "it was mowing the grains of the hillside / this way and that / How great was its energy / how humble its effort." in a manner that seemed futile in terms of its diminutive size and furious effort when compared to the grass that it was trying to consume. From this observation, we find that our individual lives play an instrumental role in the construction of our world that revolves around a large sun in what sometimes appears to be a coldly indifferent universe. Oliver's triumph in verse can be found in her ability to reveal the beauty and majesty of the natural world by describing it in loving detail as it actually appears - not as she would like it to appear. Her expression is her craft and her honesty is her gift.
Summary of Why I Wake Early: New Poems
The forty-seven new works in this volume include poems on crickets, toads, trout lilies, black snakes, goldenrod, bears, greeting the morning, watching the deer, and, finally, lingering in happiness. Each poem is imbued with the extraordinary perceptions of a poet who considers the everyday in our lives and the natural world around us and finds a multitude of reasons to wake early.Poetry Books
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