Restless Astronomy
by Michael Gilmore
Published by Dalton Publishing
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Reviewed by Sarah van Ingen
To read Michael Gilmore’s Restless Astronomy, is to spin through time and space until you discover the universe within. What’s invigorating about this collection is the combination of a vast scope with intensely personal themes. Reading this book is a little like getting lost in a Chinese landscape painting. You are first enamored by the large, looming mountains, and yet you walk away in contemplation of the small space that you inhabit in the vast panorama.
Gilmore’s writing packs a strong punch. By the time you read the second poem, “Incident in the Province of Noricum,” you will realize that the gloves are off. This writing is hard hitting, and you will be stunned. Gilmore is no amateur poet. Indeed, some of these poems are among the best being published in the U.S. today.
In “Come Away” Gilmore writes, “Sift and reconstitute/ The stale/ And make it living.” This stanza aptly describes what Gilmore achieves in his writing. He takes ordinary experiences and spins them together to create imaginary landscapes that contain the joy and ache of reality. Some of the finest poems can be found at the beginning of the collection. You won’t want to miss “Achilles Proposes to Isadora Duncan Near Athens: 1903,” “While Stacking Firewood,” “On Koshinga’s Island…,” and “Darwin, the Water Cure at Malvern, & My Ex, an Acupuncturist.”
Restless Astronomy is divided into four sections. The first two, Collateral Archeology and Chinoiserie, are outstanding. The last two sections, Martian Fevers and Realities on the Temperament, are less consistent. Some of the poems feel self-indulgent, where the “I” seems to take up a little too much space in the universe. Overall, Gilmore writes with a brutal honesty that will make you catch your breath. A few times this honesty becomes cold and crass.
Gilmore’s talent is as good as it gets when it comes to poetry. If you pick up this book, you will definitely want to read it out loud. Gilmore works language masterfully, and the sounds are simply stunning. Overall, this is a very strong pick in the poetry genre.
Armchair Interview agrees.