Jilly and I both won the Orange Challenge! And I must confess that the prize did incite me to try. Second Place went to Birdie, and Pris and Jack earned Honorable Mentions. Jenni and Jack selected the winners, and Didi will be posting reviews of the poems on Friday. I expect the review to mention the brilliance of rhyming mustache and heartache.
And, Watermark was reviewed last week by The Weblog Review. Unexpectedly, one of these reviewers, Arthur, provided what is basically my first poetry review:
When I first read the title I thought to myself, “Well, that’s just
great. I think I’d rather be stabbed in the eye with a fork than read
somebody else’s poetry.”
With such a terrific beginning, I hope I would have liked the review no matter what he said. This is what he said:
Sharon Brogan’s work redeems all of the tacky, cliché, and downright
boring poetry that I have been exposed to. Her poetry is honest and
refreshing; it takes us to a place where we have all been, but
frequently forget about . . . All of these aspects of her life can be seen as themes throughout her
poetry; themes that are at the same time universal to everyone and
personal to Sharon . . .The poetry is at the same time simple and complex, full of pining and
contentment, searching for the past and living in the present. Sharon
writes with a sensual style, that makes her images easy to see and
feel. She often writes about a desire to return to the comforts of
nature, a lover’s arms, and childhood. Her ability to write about these
things in a way that we can all relate to, makes her poetry accessible
to even the most novice of readers.. . . Sharon’s
poetry, along with her blog, is an attempt to capture that single
moment in time that “arises, still clear and bright, white against a
blue sky.” (Pelicans feeding in the Slate River…). . . Her writing and poetry take us all to a place we long to visit and return to.
It is wonderful to have a sympathetic reader. Watermark itself also fared well with him, but not so well with the second reviewer. I will write about this another time.
Later — Slipped through a brain hole: Anni chose my Snapshot 08 December to add to Poet’s Corner at fieraLingue. It has been an encouraging month for this poet.
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