The Dreamhouse

by Tom Sleigh

Book Overview

In The Dreamhouse, Tom Sleigh's poetry is a medium for both revelation and linguistic invention. The meditative clarity of Sleigh's poems, his ability to range between the plain and high style with complete naturalness of intonation, and the varying and always surprising musical effects he accomplishes in each poem display his unequaled flair for innovation that is never willful or forced but which always works to forward the poems' emotional...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0226750493
• ISBN13: 9780226750491
• Release Date: November 1999
• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Length: 113 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.1" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

New and Daring, AND Traditional and Precise.

Tom Sleigh's poetry is shocking and inventive, yet traditional in form. It seems almost a direct challenge to the kitschy "innovations" that some other poets find to be clever. One must read these poems by the line if not by the word: we are dealing with a highly sophisticated craftsman. At the same time, I find that the territory Sleigh incorpoates and makes poetry out of is not "poetical" -- depictions of "the street", direct explorations of the darkest and most terrifying human actions and emotions-- without suggesting easy resolution or reconciliaion. These poems allow us to meditate upon an intensely-felt and glimpsed life-- it is nearly a training program for cultivation of the finer senses-- minus sentimentality and jouissance. Real Bonus: spectral, astrological, sparkling love poems that concurrently have a focus on precise objects and emotions. This book is also a real pleasure for folks who know their Greek mythology.