In necessary kindling anjail ahmad explores the abundant source of generations of women before her. She also recalls African Americans' laden history and rich heritage. It is the act of remembering that kindles the book's fire- that ignites the narrator's emotional, often angry, always powerful voice. It is when this fire is lit that she also speaks of newer generations- her son, her daughter. These poems suggest a slow-burning rage at the generations-long shadow under which African American women have struggled, and they spark a hope that illuminates how the acts of women - /loving...

Darting into the unknown as only the best poetry safely can, R. H. W. Dillard's new collection bursts with bold violations of customs, flights of fancy, and insouciant leaps of tone and form. Unwaveringly skillful, these brave sallies explore the complex texture of life and death, light and dark, in "earth's eastering whirl", unafraid to confront paradox and finding in their sudden swift grace moments of "poise and equipoise" -- the preciousness of now in the face of the infinite: "Somewhere eternity extends itself like Saturday / with so many things to do and voices in the air. / Somewhere a...