Down to Earth Poetry

Jim Wilson
Morris Publishing (2006)
ISBN 0971823634
Reviewed by Beverly Pechin for Reader Views (11/06)

This was the first time I ever went into a book without any set reading order.  Taking my cue from the author himself, I simply "open the book and began to read at that very spot".  What was my reasoning for doing this?  I'm not exactly sure, other than this is what the author suggests and, well, I figured he had to know how to go about reading his own book. 

The end result was a playful, enjoyable time leafing through the pages, picking out sections and poems that just grabbed me by name.  In the end I am most certain I read every poem, some even more than once, but the delight I took in being somewhat of a rebel in the literary prose department was amazing.  And how this non-conformity helped to entice me, the reader, into enjoying the actual book even more was amazing.

From the first poem I read, "Demon Possessions" to the last one I came across in my travels through the book, "The Unkindest Cut of All" I literally laughed, sniffed away a tear, shook my head in amazement and scratched my head in wonder.  There is not any one style the author sticks to and rightly so.  There is no one emotion that overcomes our lives, so why should our poetry be stuck in one emotion? 

“Demon Possessions,” being the first poem I read, literally gave me an inside look at this author's somewhat sarcastic, silly attitude towards every day things... in this case simply owning too darn much and accumulating entirely too much over the years.  By the way, I could use that King Size bed for $20 that he offers!  My Queen is simply too lumpy!

While much of the prose is in rhyming verse, you simply turn the page to see another version of poetry gracing the pages with an artistic flow of words that look somewhat like a rainfall, tossed all about the page yet with some hint of order.

To sum the book up in a few words, it is truly a "Man's man, book of prose" written by someone talking about real things, real moments, not always such real dramatic issues and always in terms you can relate to.  Wilson isn't stuck with trying to be so poetic and artsy that he loses his reader.  With realistic meanings and metaphors that paint a vividly clear picture in your mind, he doesn't soup up his words with tons of literary garbage that hides the true meanings and thoughts.  When you read Wilson’s poetry, you know what he means.  He's not delving for some deep inner poetic meaning that only he can get but the other "wanna be" eclectic types pretend they understand, while you sit and scratch your head going "Huh"?

“Down to Earth Poetry” is a wonderful book, real at heart and soul that touches areas of life that the average person understands, nothing so intense that you walk away feeling left behind.  This would be one of the best books for parents to purchase, simply to introduce the art of poetry to their children.  Using realistic, natural flow and combining words to create everything from a chuckle to a moan it will truly give the new poetry seekers a tool to realize that not all poetry is lost in meaning with flowery words and downright overly dramatic metaphors.  This is a real "meat and potatoes" version of poetry at its best!

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