The Dead Alive and Busy (Phoenix Poets)
With its opening poems, Shapiro's (Mixed Company) seventh collection would seem to be the apex toward which his previous work was heading. Any readers not afraid of strong emotion will be moved by the mix of honesty and na?vet? that fills the book's first 20-odd pages. Shapiro calls his dying parents into focus with the same sort of sensuality that distinguishes Sharon Olds's poems about her children--although his continual references to Greek gods seems a bit overstated. And, unfortunately, his other poems simply don't hold up as well. The pieces in the book's second section are perfectly well crafted, but with the exception of a few poems about his daughter and one about hitchhiking, they are unmemorable. In the third and final section, we face illness and death again as Shapiro describes an unnamed woman dying before her time; once more, our interest is aroused. But while these poems make a serious stab at the brilliance with which this volume began, their lack of specificity prevents the reader from forming a bond. Despite these reservations, this book is recommended for most collections given Shapiro's stature.-Rochelle Ratner, formerly with "Soho Weekly News," New YorkCopyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.