Host: Selected Poems, 1965-1990 Book

I was fortunate to have Kirby direct my honors thesis about a 100 years ago at Florida State. I imagine him now as doing the true work of a poet: constantly reading, observing, and dredging memory to mine the good stuff that makes a poem. His poems in this collection are (mostly) long, thin, and conversational, bristling with humor where you least expect it. My favorites are "I Think I Am Going to Call My Wife Parquay," "The Late News," and "Man Drowning in Restaurant," but there's not a loser in the bunch. Kirby was up for a Big Poetry Prize not long ago, and he's due. Poet Laureate doesn't sound bad, either.