Local poets offer variety

UTAH SINGS, VOL. VIII: AN ANTHOLOGY OF CONTEMPORARY VERSE, edited by N. Colewell Snell, Utah Poetry Society, 487 pages.

An invaluable volume containing more than 600 poems, "Utah Sings" is a product representing Utah poets at all levels of experience and talent.

Included are the state's first poet laureate, David Lee, who served four years, and the poet currently holding the title, Ken Brewer. However, they are represented by only three poems each, far too little evidence of their versatile and undeniable talents. (Too bad there are not at least a dozen poems from each.)

Also included are some entries of the nine women who have held the title Utah Poet of the Year.

The rest of the book contains the poems of almost 300 local poets, some better known than others — and there is no effort on the part of the editor to rank or analyze any of the poets or their work.

If nothing else, this volume will present an opportunity for local poetry lovers to acquaint themselves with the work of poets previously unknown to them. It also puts some "little gems" of these poets between the covers of one volume, allowing previously unrecognized talent to get a wider audience.

Most of the poems occupy one page or less, meaning they can be easily sampled by referring either to the poet or the subject. Short biographies of the poets at the end of the volume provide a peek into their diverse backgrounds.

Some, like the widely appreciated Emma Lou Thayne and the nationally known Leslie Norris, have published many volumes of poetry, while others write poetry "with their left hands" — during or following careers as social workers, phone operators, actors, teachers, professors, pianists, journalists, business owners, photographers, law enforcement officers, attorneys, biologists and many other professions.

Some of the poets have won poetry competitions, and some haven't. Some write in traditional meter, and some don't. Some write prose poems, and others write with great simplicity. After all, a poet has nothing if not freedom of expression.

The subjects chosen to write about also vary widely from the mundane and everyday aspects of life to the serious decision-making we all go through. Some are very serious, and others are satirical. There is splendid variety here — enough material to allow any potential reader of poetry to dabble without getting caught.

One complaint is that there is not enough depth from any of the poets to get a good handle on their body of work. The other is that we can't hear these poets read aloud from their own work.

Incidentally, the jacket is dotted with beautiful color photos of the Utah landscape.

Kudos to the Utah Poetry Society.

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E-mail: dennis@desnews.com