Dear Anais: My Life in Poems for You
by Diana M. Raab
Published by Plain View Press
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Reviewed by Beth Cummings
Anais Nin (1903-1977) was a diarist and letter writer who became famous for both her unconventional life and her frank diaries describing her relationships with prominent authors, artists and others. Diana Raab is a poet and memoirist who discovered Nin’s diaries and began reading them about ten years ago. She found Nin’s words to be compelling and inspiring when she created her own poetry. Because she felt this connection to Nin and because she feels her own poetry “was born in my journal and tells the story of my life,” Raab dedicated this volume to Anaїs Nin.
I have not read Anais Nin, but after reading this delightful volume of verse, I am somewhat inclined to see for myself the words that inspired these words of Diana Raab. I truly enjoyed reading these poems. They are filled with everyday truths and are also accessible. It seems that many current poets feel the need to obscure what they are saying behind illusions of grandeur and allusions of antiquity. Raab has given her work colors and pictures that are readily identifiable.
One I especially liked is “Sketch of a Writer’s Studio,” where three line stanzas perfectly picture the workroom of a woman of words;
“dusty antique typewriters interspersed
with writing manuals and memoirs
once alphabetical, ……
a crooked pile of books laden with stickers
on their best pages, purple pens
and yellow highlighters…”
Raab writes her poems in mostly free-verse style – no consistent rhyming or heavy meter. Some, like the excerpted one above, are a series of three-line stanzas, others are almost paragraphs, and still others are what are generally called list poems. All are descriptive and several tell stories of a particular day or feeling.
I would recommend this volume to poetry lovers and to others like me who enjoyed Raab’s memoir, Regina’s Closet. (see review)
Armchair Interviews says: Raab allows her poetry skills to shine here.
Author’s Web site: http://www.DianaRaab.com