Weaving Sundown in a Scarlet Light

July 1, 2022

Three-term U.S. Poet Laureate Harjo, a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, offers the best of her deep-rooted, farseeing, musically astute poetry written over five decades, each accompanied by notes.

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from November 21, 2022
Harjo’s patient guidance, mastery of form, and emotional depth are on dazzling display in these 50 poems drawing from 50 years of her poetry career. Her sensitivity toward the human experience is everywhere evident, especially in “Bird” (for jazz saxophonist Charlie Parker), in which she writes, “I’ve always had a theory that some of us/ are born with nerve endings longer than our bodies,” arriving at an indelible insight: “All poets/ understand the final uselessness of words. We are chords to/ other chords to other chords, if we’re lucky, to melody.” She revisits this idea in “Creation Story,” remarking, “I am ashamed/ I never had the words/ to carry a friend from her death/ to the stars/ correctly.// Or the words to keep/ my people safe/ from drought/ or gunshot.” “Eagle Poem” captures Harjo’s interest in the natural world and cycles, opening, “To pray you open your whole self/ To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon/ To one whole voice that is you.” Harjo connects the human family, and the earthly and spiritual realms, in poems that sparkle with generosity and brilliance.

Starred review from December 1, 2022

A former three-time U.S. Poet Laureate, Harjo celebrates her 50th year as a writer by gathering 50 of her best poems in this career-spanning volume. Powerful, personal, and deeply spiritual, these are the poems of a prophet, and as with the words of the greatest prophets, they transcend both category and culture, speaking with an awe-inspiring authority as they draw on Harjo's heritage as a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. "i want to go back / to New Mexico// it is the only way i know how to breathe" says the opening poem, while the closing poem observes "We will find each other again in a timeless weave of breathing." Here are poems that have inspired readers and poets to see the world anew and listen to the unheard stories all around them. As a sampling of her work, this slender volume is a great companion to 2002's How We Became Human. Like that volume, it ends with a lengthy section of notes about the inspiration and creation of each poem that sheds light on Harjo's career, her passions, and the people she loves, allowing readers to see even favorite and familiar poems with new eyes. VERDICT Harjo is a national treasure, perhaps even a national resource, and this important book is an essential addition to contemporary poetry collections everywhere.--Herman Sutter

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.