""Jo
McDougall has inspired readers with her work for more than 30 years. Her
collected poems, In the Home of the Famous Dead, presents all her books, from
1983 through 2010. McDougall,
a 20-year resident of the Kansas City area, now resides in Arkansas. Both
places recur in the writings. Each poem is an essential lesson about how to
find joy in this beautiful but blemished existence.
"McDougall
teaches readers how to view landscapes. She presents stark panoramas, then adds
a human dimension. In
“Driving Alone,” the briefly sketched setting evokes enormity: “Sunset takes
the light, the sound.” The title sets up the drama of loneliness as the poem
develops a story: “She reaches for the radio, / already on.” This woman is
adrift in a car. The solitary journey is familiar, a shared metaphor for life
itself, and also a very real emotion. . . ."
See more of my review online http://www.kansascity.com/entertainment/books/article24675628.html#storylink=cpy
Purchase online or through the University of Arkansas Press:
In the Home of the Famous Dead: Collected Poems, by Jo McDougall (250 pages; University of Arkansas Press; $24.95, $49.95 cloth)
