Come the Slumberless to the Land of Nod is Traci Brimhall’s new collection, about 2/3 poems and 1/3 difficult to classify (prosetry? creative nonfiction?). The subject matter rotates around the murder of a friend, the death of a mother, the birth of a son, and a marriage in trouble. The work also is philosophical, with Biblical references (as in the title) and several poems that are letters to Eros or Thanatos. There are nine “lullabies” and three “murder ballads.” Her many references to the work of Francisco Garcia Lorca, the Spanish poet, was of particular interest to me because during the past year I have become interested in Lorca’s work, life, and political murder at the hands of Franco’s Fascists in 1936. But it’s the quality of the writing that knocked me out, with line after line that required me to stop and simply admire. Traci Brimhall is one the finest poets writing today. If you’re into buying poetry books, I recommend purchasing this one. Here’s what Green Mountain Reviews says:
