Column of Silence and Other Poems
by Joyce Nower
Avranches Press
ISBN 0-9625886-5-2

eaders up on their mythology are in for a delight with Joyce Nower's book of poetry, Column of Silence. The first indication of this theme is found on the cover, which features an enormous Grecian column. Most of the poems demonstrate an exceptional knowledge of the ancient myths.

Ms. Nower even finds a way to incorporate biblical references in the poem in "The Monastery at Meteora, Greece," describing Eve as "...body a swirl / of curves like a filigree of birds."

The book consists of twenty-nine poems, all written with obvious skill. In the opening poem, "Peconic Bay, Long Island," she gives this description:

Summers I simmered barefoot
on white wafer sand.

Nower, with all her academic credits (a founder of the first Women's Studies Program in the nation), hasn't quashed a terrific sense of humor. Some titles reveal this fun side, an example being "Upon Hearing a Well-Known Poet Praise 'Slim White Thighs.'"

This is a poet with a firm voice, sometimes a somber one, as in "Prayer for Protection," in which she writes of "the tin cup of despair." In fact, she touches on many topical subjects, even John Wayne:

we're there when
clear-cut good and evil

cleanse and redeem
our fuzzyheadedness,
our grasping at straws.

"If You Leave" stands out with notable line breaks, and is followed by this reviewer's favorite of the poems, "In a Gentle Rain," brimming with heart-wrenching sorrow and the utter beauty of these lines:

In a gentle rain of us . . .
we are gone, our enemies behind,
absolved, our friends beginning to

forget the angle of your jaw.

For one who has read far too many Fall "changing colors of the leaves" poems, Nower offers a refreshing treat: "the trees / glittered a bright mosaic of leaves / a herald of maturity."

Bravo!

The book is available for ordering from Amazon.com.

© Melanie McConnell