Damian Rogers

the structure of this felt really forced to me, which is ironic given that she's a poet. it made the whole thing work less well and parts of it felt more constructed than real. but when she was in the middle of the chapters and when she was describing her relationship with her mom and the questions she had - there was real beauty. i wish she had just focused on telling her story; this would have been stronger, i think. as it was, there were aspects that resonated and that were well done, but so much of it didn't end up working for me. i'd be curious about her poetry and wonder if that would hit more cleanly, or if it would miss the mark a bit as well.… (altro)

I had a hard time getting into this collection. Rogers' previous collection, Paper Radio, had poems that felt more like stories, and I liked those. Dear Leader featured poems that seemed more like collections of sentences put together for some sort of effect. For this reason, I found them harder to read, hold onto and appreciate. I did like some of the themes that were discussed: old age, memory and loss are themes that have particular resonance for me. But I found this collection difficult to get stuck into. This may go over better with people who read poetry more seriously than I.… (altro)

A very interesting collection. I'm not really that qualified to give a review of a poetry collection, at least when it comes to discussing all the technical aspects that make the poems great and all the imagery and stuff. All I know is what I like, and I do like a lot. Of these poems, my favourites are the ones where Damian tells a definite story, like "Autobiography" or "Better Living Through Industry". I also liked "Biography". The appearance of a red bird throughout the book was also a clever touch. I'm very glad Greg [Keelor, of Blue Rodeo] recommended this book -- it's interesting and just challenging enough for me to want to explore it in greater depth.… (altro)