The Interview Rose

The grass with little daisies in itspringsas if springs are under my feet. I poke the ferrule of my umbrella in it, as ifI need a prop for steadiness and yet it is a pretence: waterlogged or notsomething like joy is running underneath.  In her twentieth poetry collection,Elizabeth Smither brings together a new ensemble of surprising images and charismaticcompanions. A herd of cows gathers around a radio to listen wide-eyed to aMozart concerto. A frog leads us unhurriedly down the garden path. JaneAusten’s Emma makes an appearance. A cat critiques Wittgenstein. And aflamboyant fabric rose rescues a job interview. Each poem in The Interview Rose isa bridge between the private self and the physical world, travelling the longroute through art, religion, philosophy, and the pleasures of language.