Day 6: The Gift of Poetry

We love giving and receiving poetry, and three of our favorite poets have new books this year. So Day 6 in our 24 Days of Books is a three-fer.  Penelope Scambly Schott, winner of the 2008 Oregon Book Award for poetry, has a marvelous new collection called Crow Mercies. These fierce, honest poems will sear themselves into your brain and stay there for a very long time (in a GOOD way).  Paulann Petersen, our current Poet Laureate, has a beautiful, hypnotic, blazingly sensual new book called Voluptuary.  I’m always amazed at Paulann’s work, and let me just say that the woman has a special thing going on with bees (again, in a GOOD way).  Our third pick is Mary Oliver’s most recent collection of poems and prose poems, Swan.  Ms. Oliver’s affinity for the natural world shines through all her work, and this book is no exception.  And we must say it here: R.I.P Percy, Ms. Oliver’s beloved feline companion.  What poetry do you love?  And who can you share it with?