Old And New Testaments (Brittingham Prize in Poetry)
"A radiance and clarity suffuses Lynn             Powell's work."—Carolyn Kizer, Brittingham Prize Citation"In Lynn Powell's poems we rediscover             the meaning of the word 'testament,' for they give us a full             testimony of a life, a family, a world. Whether writing of grief,             or the Rapture, of a junebug or Aunt Roxy at the age of one hundred,             she brings us intense, crafted narratives of self­knowledge,             of facts so vivid they are painful, becoming signs and also wonders             of life. These are poems of the recovery of spiritual desire.             This is an extraordinary book, and an extraordinary new talent."—Robert             Morgan"These direct, loving, sober poems             are the change we need from most recent verse. The intensity             of the opening poems inOld & New Testamentsbuilds             throughout the book until, almost intolerable, it transforms             into profound acceptance, the quietness that comes of acknowledging             both life and death. These images and rhythms need no persuasiveness             beyond themselves, brightening our spirits with the clarity of             reality."—A. R. Ammons"Lynn Powell'sOld & New Testamentsis a reclaiming of spiritual texts and traditions for a woman's             life in the body—a life of childhood physicality, female             sexuality, procreation, and nurturing love. Playful, tender,             and wise, Powell brings her gospel learning down to earth. We             can hail her poems in an old phrase with a new meaning: they             are full of grace."—Alicia Ostriker