Inherit the Atchafalaya Book

Having recently read Kim Addonizio's volume of the Best American Poetry and this, I am struck by something. I love Addonizio's writing for its emotional authenticity and rawness. I find it interesting that she doesn't choose much poetry that echoes that when she is editing. Of course, that may not be the whole truth as far as what she likes to read (what she was given to choose from, etc...) but I find that what she has chosen for these two volumes doesn't echo her own voice very much.

This is certainly not a bad collection. I would even say that it is more vibrant on the whole than some of the Best American Poetry volumes I've been reading lately. It does, however, pull almost entirely from academic poetry circles. This may or may not be good, depending on your opinion of academic poetry. Personally, I find much of it to be well-crafted but clinical.

Katy Didden wrote my personal standout and I hope to be able to purchase a book by her soon.