The book’s title hardly does it poetic justice. But whatever Denise Levertov’s ‘Selected Poems’ lacks in its bland heading, it more than compensates for with startlingly original content.
Levertov, an English-born, home-schooled poet, met her American husband while working as a nurse in Paris. The couple lived in New York, Mexico and France while she went from nurse to verse and wrote what has been called some of the finest modern poetry of our time. She was born 1923, first published in 1940 at 17 and died in 1997.
In this chronological selection of her life’s work, she covers diverse topics like war, marriage, the collective condition of mankind and love while also managing to mention broken sandals, bees, roasted potatoes and cats. A good portion of the poetry deals with political issues and Levertov’s dislike of war, while other works address her relationships with her loved ones.
Levertov does not attempt hiding her inspiration, preceding poems with quotes by Yeats, Rilke and Thoreau and even titling one work ‘Memories of John Keats.’ She does, however, take the ideas of those quotes and run with them in unexpected directions, creatively expounding on the ideas or even contesting them.
As for style, Levertov’s strong point is her imagery, which is rich in nature and color and deftly blends romantic and everyday images. While she does sometimes extend them, her lines are generally short, sweet crumbs of verse, which she has a knack for slicing just right, letting strategically constructed endings result in poignant poetic ambiguity. Levertov unquestionably has a firm command of poetic devices, using entertaining, unexpected metaphors and playing strongly to the connotative meaning of words.
And who isn’t a sucker for a shout-out? Levertov refers to being ‘On Tremont Street, / on the Common’ in her poem ‘Joy.’ She not only mentions Davis Square in Somerville but describes with fondness the late-night dining and pool-hall classic hot spots for anyone who knows the area.
Though Levertov’s earlier work is brighter in both imagery and temperament, she becomes temporarily gloomier, putting smiles on hiatus with poems like ‘Talking to Grief,’ which illustrates a more depressing and pessimistic outlook. While she delves further into religion and deeper topics, the subjects begin a sudden thermocline that sucks warmth from the once-affectionate poetry this murky immersion is no longer as pleasant.
After that brief slump, the enjoyment returns to the collection as Levertov seems to regain her healthy curiosity in life with poems such as ‘The Traveler’ and ‘Sands of the Well,’ which resume the light, quizzical style of her eralier compositions.
Overall, one can expect from these selected poems a glimpse into Levertov’s imaginative thoughts. She has her unique perspectives on various issues and ability to artfully convey them. For the most part, Levertov’s poetry reads like an aboveground pool: refreshing and suitably deep enough to be enjoyable.