InsideOut: Poems by L.L. Barkat

I posted this review at Amazon today.

Beautiful, Luminous Poems

L.L. Barkat, author of Stone Crossings: Finding Grace in Hidden Places, got it into her head to sit outside each day for a year, even if only for a short time. And she got this idea – in the dead of winter. Her timing may have been off – snow and sub-zero temperatures aren’t the most conducive conditions for a long-term plan – but she did it, and the result is InsideOut: Poems.

Divided by seasons, the poems explore the range of human experience – from tragedy (the death of a spouse; a mother and son’s last moments aboard an ill-fated airliner) to family and love. They also cover the senses – sight, taste, touch, hearing – in luxuriant, almost sensuous words and concepts.

From “In Your Dream”:

i.

I was the wind
that knocked at the glass, that tipped
the candle that burned the kitchen;
all that remained was a golden fork.

ii.

I was the sound
of shattering, of gold
chattering amidst the wild
wild flames.

Or try this untitled poem:

I have heard
they harvest wild rice
by hand,
bending stems
that rise from waters,
knocking them
for chocolate
seed.

(And now say both poems out loud.)

I read InsideOut twice, and the second time was almost overwhelming. These are beautiful, luminous poems, and I’m glad Barkat braved those snows. She’s given us a gift here, a great gift.

Photo by Sonia Joie, used with permission. Post by Glynn Young.

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