You've Just Been Told

Here, in Elizabeth Macklin's second collection, an only child's responses to the fait accompli of childhood—decisions already made, accidents of history and family, patterns preset—come to the adult mind in the presence of change and grief. The mind regroups as it can: "later light on the hills of houses / before us / just as they are, as versus none."

"[P]oems of abrupt perception and rigorous lyricism."—New York Times Book Review "I love Elizabeth Macklin's poems."—Thomas Lux "The joy and intelligence in these poems is simply tremendous."—Tomaz Salamun, author of The Four Questions of Melancholy "Mastery as well as mystery, and we are grateful for what we've just been told."—Richard Howard "Macklin the Magician does it again!....dazzling evocations."—Marie Ponsot, author of The Bird Catcher  "[A]n exceedingly wise book—and joyful, too, though the joy is never glib or easy-won..."—Bill McKibben "Elizabeth Macklin talks to me, woman to woman, poet to poet. In listening to her, I am rewarded."—Nina Cassian