Imperfect Thirst - book review

If your eyes are not deceived by the mirage
Do not be proud of the sharpness of your understanding;
It may be your freedom from this optical illusion
Is due to the imperfectness of your thirst.
----- Sohrawardi

So reads the epigraph at the beginning of Imperfect Thirst by Galway Kinnell. This is a small book with rather large poems. And they're the kind of poems that make you want to go back and read them again and again to see if you've gotten all the meaning out. Sort of like going over a corn cob a second or third time because you just can't stand to miss one juicy kernel.

Kinnell uses words like a skilled mechanic uses wrenches and screwdrivers. Each word is exactly the right one even if it is so obscure that you haven't seen it since your SAT tests. It is the right word. The pictures he paints with these words make you think you know him or that he knows you. It's creepy. It's emotional. It's fun.

I'm going to look for more from this guy.