American Smooth

Poems

17 March 2006

Rita Dove (Author)

Description

"Rita Dove pulls the ultimate dance trick: she makes it look easy."--New York Times Book Review

An occasion to celebrate: a new collection by the Pulitzer Prize-winning former poet laureate; her first since On the Bus with Rosa Parks. With the grace of an Astaire, Rita Dove's magnificent poems pay homage to our kaleidoscopic cultural heritage; from the glorious shimmer of an operatic soprano to Bessie Smith's mournful wail; from paradise lost to angel food cake; from hotshots at the local shooting range to the Negro jazz band in World War I whose music conquered Europe before the Allied advance. Like the ballroom-dancing couple of the title poem, smiling and making the difficult seem effortless, Dove explores the shifting surfaces between perception and intimation.

Awards

Winner — New York Times Notable Selection, 2004

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Paperback

9780393327441

140 x 211 mm • 144 pages

£15.00

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