Burt, Stephen

Burt's poems are never less than compassionate, and—with rare exceptions, such as the obliquely political "2016"—they are positive and affirming, answering Stephanie's "Why can't I wear two different colored shoes?" with a confident "But you can."

This book is for anyone interested in the state of American poetry today—academic and general readers alike will find it engaging. For public libraries and libraries with special poetry collections.

Grounded in the physical world, the poems recognize and enshrine the wonder of consciousness itself and follow wherever it might lead. When Burt, a young father, writes "children are taller than ideas," you know his concern for the former in no way inhibits his pursuit of the latter.