The Book of Men

"Laux writes gritty, tough, lyrical poems that depict the actual nature of life in the West today."—Philip Levine The narrative poems in Dorianne Laux's fifth collection charge through the summer of love, where Vietnam casts a long shadow, and into the present day, where she compassionately paints the smoky bars, graffiti, and addiction of urban life. Laux is "continually engaging and, at her best, luminous" (San Diego Union-Tribune). from "To Kiss Frank,"      make out with him a bit, this      is what my friend would like to do      oh these too many dead summers later,      and as much as I want to stroll with her      into the poet's hazy fancy      all I can see is O'Hara's long gone lips      fallen free of the bone, slumbering      beneath the grainy soil.