Lines of Defense: Poems
Pulitzer Prize–winning Dunn’s seventeenth collection is stunning. Divided into four sections, and including the stand-alone “If the Poet,” Dunn asks the big questions, offers contradictory and exploratory insights, and addresses mighty themes throughout. He offers an unnerving realization about what history preserves of life’s grand gestures: “Some of us wanted to drop out, go far away / from integrity’s demands. Others sought strange / consultations with their almost vanished selves.” Dunn is smart without being caustic, partial to the mundane in its glory, and willing to look back without giving up hope: “Just to be clear— / no whining on the journey. / If you whine, you’ll get stuck / somewhere with people / like yourself.” There is a whimsical feel to these poems. That’s not to say there isn’t conviction. Dunn writes of life experienced, and, in that, the uncovering of truth: “I don’t want to be brave, or safe. / I resolve never to fake joy, / or pursue old grief. If I encounter opacity, / I’ll try to smash it with something clear.” --Mark Eleveld