[ Sunday, May 02, 2004 ]
Any serious review of The Alphabet of Desire, the latest
Book by FSU English professor Barbara Hamby,
Could only be written in the ``abecedarian'' style
Dominating the central portion of the collection, I think.
Emulating her style, however clumsily, is merely my
Fashion of proffering her the ultimate compliment,
Guilty as I may be of doing her a disservice in the process.
Hamby's work is sensual, visual, humorous and imaginatively
Inventive. It glides from descriptions of revelry to
Judicious apologies to X-rays of a spouse's dreams, a
Knowledge of any of which we all might secretly
Lust after, but, having discovered the truth, finally regret.
Much of the work is informed by Hamby's European sojourns,
Notably the closing third of the collection, a delightful series of
Odes to subjects diverse as Italian fruit, castrati, and
Public bathrooms, not to mention her allegedly wasted youth.
Quelled in childhood by a fundamentalist upbringing, but
Released in later years by the power of the word and
Surely aided by some goddess of the feminine ying principle,
The professor's wordsmithing received the New York
University Press Prize for Poetry in 1998 -
Voluptuous praise rightly earned. As she remarked
When addressing a Books Alive audience at GCCC last week, the
Xenogenesis of creation, Biblically, was ``the Word,'' not Greek
Ylem - to which The Alphabet of Desire stands as testimonial.
Zesty, to borrow a phrase from Taco Bell.
The Alphabet of Desire
By Barbara Hamby
New York University Press
$12.95 in hardback
(Originally appeared as a review in The Entertainer section of The News Herald, Panama City, FL. See the online archives at www.newsherald.com)
Unknown [9:19 PM]
