Musical Tables: Poems
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- Create Date：2022-11-13 08:21:35
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Billy Collins
- ISBN：0399589783
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Reviews
Lydia Wallace
，
This book is filled with short poems。 Even though its a fast read and loaded with short poems， I loved it。 Its very thought provoking。 I loved the title of the book and the cover。 Even though its a fast read and loaded with short poems， I loved it。 Its very thought provoking。 I loved the title of the book and the cover。 You read the poem and not understand what its talking about until you read it a few times， then the ah ha comes。 Highly recommend。
Faith
，
I discovered the poetry of Billy Collins about twenty years ago and promptly fell in love with his wry humor and play on words。 I'm amassing his entire collection， because his work brings me such delight。In Musical Tables， Collins explores the format of small poems， demonstrating the expertise of painting a picture or telling a story in such a small footprint: "These days， whenever I pick up a new book of poems， I flip through the pages looking for small ones。 Just as I might trust an abstract e I discovered the poetry of Billy Collins about twenty years ago and promptly fell in love with his wry humor and play on words。 I'm amassing his entire collection， because his work brings me such delight。In Musical Tables， Collins explores the format of small poems， demonstrating the expertise of painting a picture or telling a story in such a small footprint: "These days， whenever I pick up a new book of poems， I flip through the pages looking for small ones。 Just as I might trust an abstract expressionist more if I knew he or she could draw a credible chicken， I have faith in poets who can go short。"Take the charm of the poem "3:00 AM，" which reads in its entirety， "Only my hand / is asleep， / but it's a start。" Or "Morning Walk，" where we observe， "The dog stops often / to sniff the poems of others / before reciting her own。"In ultimate proof of my pleasure， I finished this book while exercising， finding myself at multiple points with a wide grin and amused laugh due to Collins' wordplay， not a familiar （or easy） reaction when sweating doing cardio on my stationary bike。 And I couldn't help but feel guilty when I encountered the poem， "Page-Turner" （"Desirable / in fiction。 / Not so much / with a slim book of poems。"）。 Surely Billy Collins would forgive a girl for inhaling the last section of the book because she was welcoming a pleasant distraction。Musical Tables is a perfect respite from the world， when attention spans are short or if one just has a brief moment of downtime but a desire to be revived， to see the world through a new lens。（I received a digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review。） 。。。more
Dan
，
My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Random House Publishing Group- Random House for an advanced copy of this collection of short poems。 Back in the day when numerous newspapers vied for the eyes of readers at newstands it was the headlines that grabbed people， and made them surrender their hard earned quarters。 Cows Lose Job as Milk Prices Drop。 Forecasters call for Weather on Monday。 Or Ford to City- Drop Dead。 An entire tale， humorous，full of pathos， and something that drew the mind My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Random House Publishing Group- Random House for an advanced copy of this collection of short poems。 Back in the day when numerous newspapers vied for the eyes of readers at newstands it was the headlines that grabbed people， and made them surrender their hard earned quarters。 Cows Lose Job as Milk Prices Drop。 Forecasters call for Weather on Monday。 Or Ford to City- Drop Dead。 An entire tale， humorous，full of pathos， and something that drew the mind and make a person think。 And short。 Musical Tables， a collection of short poems by Billy Collins， two term Poet Laureate of the United States， are tiny tales that tell a lot about life， love， aging and our weird times， with a little humor a bit of love， and even more hope。Upon getting a new book of poems Billy Collins likes to flip through and find the short pieces， sort of a way of breaking the ice， meeting the poet and finding out what the works might be like。 In this collection 125 works are gathered， some a few words， more a few sentences from haiku to whatever he feels like。 Themes run from aging， love， losing things， losing others， losing one's place in life， and losing the mind over what is happening around us all。 Some are funny， many are punny， but all show a skill that many people might assume is easy， but is not， not at all。 Trying to find the words to make a portrait in the mind that is short to read， but long to mull on， sometimes with multiple meanings， that is not easy。 While it might seem like doodlings， in fact at one point he mentions pulling the car over to write some words down， these show quite a bit more thinking than even Collins wants to admit。 The collection should be a breeze to flip through， it is not。 Like reading a Lydia Davis short short story， there are many ways to think of these poems， and even to look at them， and see how the words fit。 Why these words， would something else have worked？ How would the meaning have changed？ What is the meaning？ Quite a few of these lodge into the brain， refusing to pay rent and making the reader spend a day or two thinking about them， and why they stay with the reader。 If it is not apparent， I really enjoyed this collection。 I didn't want to give examples， as even a brief excerpt or a phrase might give something away， or weaken a poem when read later。 Billy Collins is telling us something here。 Maybe he understands the fact that world is getting harder and harder to follow， weirder， dangerous and stupid all at the same time。 Distraction and COVID- brain fog， even for the ones who avoided getting ill， seem the new normal。 Short sharp shocks of words might be what gets us back to normal， or at least remind us that once there was a normal。 Or is it that we are so far gone that we are only capable of reading a few words at a time， comprehending so little and understanding far less。 Recommended for poets， lovers of poetry and poets， songwriters to get the idea that lyrics can be strong in a few words。 。。。more
Laura Salas
，
Billy Collins is one of my favorite poets for adults。 He's the king of approachable poetry， and I generally love the way his poems start out in such ordinary scenes but then wander a bit into unknown or unexpected territory。 In hearing him read live， I've heard him share some of his short poems， and I enjoyed many of those， too。 But I have to say this collection isn't really for me。 Many of them are simply puns written as poems， such as "4'33" by John Cage" and "Child Astronomy。" There are occas Billy Collins is one of my favorite poets for adults。 He's the king of approachable poetry， and I generally love the way his poems start out in such ordinary scenes but then wander a bit into unknown or unexpected territory。 In hearing him read live， I've heard him share some of his short poems， and I enjoyed many of those， too。 But I have to say this collection isn't really for me。 Many of them are simply puns written as poems， such as "4'33" by John Cage" and "Child Astronomy。" There are occasional ones that do create a mood， an atmosphere， and give me something to think about further， such as "Falling Asleep" and "Summer。" But for most of them， I just hear a kind of "ba-doop-boom" Dad-joke sound effect in my head after I read them。 I'm sure this collection will find some new fans for Collins， and I do believe any writer should be able to explore new directions！ Unfortunately this direction isn't for me。 I've been looking forward to Collins' new book for months， and I'm disappointed to be so disappointed in it。 :>（Review copy provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Lisa
，
What a fun book of poetry！ I've always enjoyed Billy Collins' work， and these short poems are wonderful。 I found myself smiling the whole time I read。 This entire book could be read in one sitting， but why？ Each poem is a gem， and I look forward to reading them over and over。 Many thanks to Mr。 Collins， Random House， and NetGalley for the ARC of this title。 What a fun book of poetry！ I've always enjoyed Billy Collins' work， and these short poems are wonderful。 I found myself smiling the whole time I read。 This entire book could be read in one sitting， but why？ Each poem is a gem， and I look forward to reading them over and over。 Many thanks to Mr。 Collins， Random House， and NetGalley for the ARC of this title。 。。。more
Kinsey
，
4 Stars！ I truly enjoyed reading through this collection of poems。 Musical Tables， by Billy Collins， is a very short， but entertaining read with emotion， humor， and wit generously sprinkled throughout。 I ate it up！I'm already a fan of poetry， but I feel like this could be appreciated by anyone and everyone。 （Also， not that it really matters much， but I have to mention that I absolutely ADORE the cover。）*Please note that I did win an ARC in a Goodreads giveaway and am showing my appreciation with 4 Stars！ I truly enjoyed reading through this collection of poems。 Musical Tables， by Billy Collins， is a very short， but entertaining read with emotion， humor， and wit generously sprinkled throughout。 I ate it up！I'm already a fan of poetry， but I feel like this could be appreciated by anyone and everyone。 （Also， not that it really matters much， but I have to mention that I absolutely ADORE the cover。）*Please note that I did win an ARC in a Goodreads giveaway and am showing my appreciation with an honest review。* 。。。more
Erienne Jones
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Small poems are my favorite and this book of small poems does not disappoint！
Pam
，
Musical Tables is a delightful and beautifully written collection of short poems。 Collins is gifted in his ability to bring the essence of his observations of humanity and nature to live in a very small number of words。 We’ll worth the read。
Amanda Toomey
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This book of poetry is difficult to rate as it's very wide in tone and content。 There are poems here that made me laugh out loud， some that were melancholic， others that left me scratching my head （and still do）。 Unlike some poetry， for many of these the reading of the title is a key aspect of the poem itself， so be sure to read the titles first。 Even then， without context you may not have enough knowledge to "get" the poem as some of them rely upon understanding a linguistic turn of phrase， his This book of poetry is difficult to rate as it's very wide in tone and content。 There are poems here that made me laugh out loud， some that were melancholic， others that left me scratching my head （and still do）。 Unlike some poetry， for many of these the reading of the title is a key aspect of the poem itself， so be sure to read the titles first。 Even then， without context you may not have enough knowledge to "get" the poem as some of them rely upon understanding a linguistic turn of phrase， historical or literary references， or a real world oddity。 （For example， the poem entitled "Yamaha" is set in the context there are both Yamaha pianos and Yamaha motorcycles。） Which isn't a complaint， merely a comment， as this is what leads to the cleverness of some of the most amusing poems in this book。For the uninitiated the "Afterward" explains what a "short poem" requires -- essentially nothing other than it be short。 The shortness of these left some where you get a distinct image in your mind， yet it feels like half a thought， a story untold， or a chord never resolved。 This is why I decided on 4/5 stars。Overall， I enjoyed this collection and will share specific poems with others whom will enjoy them。（I received this book as a proof copy from a goodreads giveaway， some aspects may change before final publication。） 。。。more
Madison
，
One of the hardest experiences of my formal education was having a word limit on large projects。 How can a professor ask for a thorough investigation of an assigned topic， and then truncate the result to a measly 1000 words？ While this is not my first encounter with Billy Collins’s poetry （I quite enjoy reading “Introduction to Poetry” each semester with my students）， I found the brevity of each piece refreshing and thought-provoking。 This volume is a gourmet meal of poetry: each bite tiny， but One of the hardest experiences of my formal education was having a word limit on large projects。 How can a professor ask for a thorough investigation of an assigned topic， and then truncate the result to a measly 1000 words？ While this is not my first encounter with Billy Collins’s poetry （I quite enjoy reading “Introduction to Poetry” each semester with my students）， I found the brevity of each piece refreshing and thought-provoking。 This volume is a gourmet meal of poetry: each bite tiny， but unforgettable。 。。。more
✨maciej✨
，
4✨Firstly， I would like to thank Random House Publishing and NetGalley， who kindly provided me with a free advanced reader's copy of this work in exchange for an honest review。Billy Collins' upcoming poetry collection Musical Tables is comprised of roughly 125 poems; each of them very， uniquely small。 The poems within this work are short， some of them even four lines or less， and as hesitant as I was of this going in， I was pleasantly surprised upon finishing this wonderful little collection。Whi 4✨Firstly， I would like to thank Random House Publishing and NetGalley， who kindly provided me with a free advanced reader's copy of this work in exchange for an honest review。Billy Collins' upcoming poetry collection Musical Tables is comprised of roughly 125 poems; each of them very， uniquely small。 The poems within this work are short， some of them even four lines or less， and as hesitant as I was of this going in， I was pleasantly surprised upon finishing this wonderful little collection。While Musical Tables is certainly a departure from Collins' usual long-form work， he proves to be excellent in capturing small， blink-and-you'll-miss-it moments; condensing them into bite-sized pieces of poetry。 Not to say， of course， that these poems are lacking in any way， or that they would require more lines to flesh out their narrative or emotional weight。 These poems feel complete。Dealing with themes commonly found in Collins' long-form work - including nature， animals， love， humanity， and memory - the poems in Musical Tables are emotional， introspective， and at times quite humorous。 The poems' small-form technique recalls "This Is Just To Say" by William Carlos Williams， for example。I am very happy to have read this collection。 Billy Collins' poetic voice is certainly one to remember; it will make you laugh， think， and fill you with wonder for all the little things that usually go unnoticed。 。。。more
Jeimy
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Are all of the poems perfect？ No。 Was I amused by this collection of poetic vignette’s。 Yes。Was I sucker punched by a poem that reminded of a great lost lost？ Sadly， yes。
Jeremy Booty
，
Have you ever opened a box of chocolates swearing that you will have just one or two and then find you have eaten the whole damn box？ That's what happened when I dipped into this book。 I kept saying "just one more" until to my surprise I came to the acknowledgements 。 This is a book of little poems， each a small treasure。 Many are ironic， more than a few are outright funny。 I had to stiffle my laugh several times during my early morning little poem bender。 I will no doubt buy this when it comes Have you ever opened a box of chocolates swearing that you will have just one or two and then find you have eaten the whole damn box？ That's what happened when I dipped into this book。 I kept saying "just one more" until to my surprise I came to the acknowledgements 。 This is a book of little poems， each a small treasure。 Many are ironic， more than a few are outright funny。 I had to stiffle my laugh several times during my early morning little poem bender。 I will no doubt buy this when it comes out。 。。。more
ASimpleLifeWithBooks
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*Disclaimer* I won this in a Good Reads giveaway & received an ARC。 The following opinion is my own。 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “I loved the suddenness of small poems。 They seemed to arrive & depart at the same time， disappearing in a wink” A small selection for the Afterword that I enjoyed。 Some poems were a tiny bit dull for me but the majority of them I truly loved & sat with！ A nice quick easy poetry read for a beautiful day outside。 Nice & simple & easy， one I’d recommend。
Jessica
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What intimate intricate works 。。。 such as watching another's life through a open window。。 what a wonderful book indeed。。 What intimate intricate works 。。。 such as watching another's life through a open window。。 what a wonderful book indeed。。 。。。more
Kaitlin
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Musical Tables is a collection of witty， extremely short poems by Billy Collins， a former poet laureate。 I enjoyed this collection and found the poems to be accessible and witty。 At its best， these micro-poems provide smart， vivid vignettes into a discrete moment of time。 I would estimate 2/3 of the poems fell into that category。 Some of the others read more like “dad jokes。” Overall， would recommend this collection。
Kim Yeargin
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I was given this book in a promotion by Goodreads in exchange for an honest reiew。 Sometimes you want a small poem。 This collection has some good ones。 I like how you can get the entirety of an experience boiled down to a few words。 For example:Refrigerator LightThe minuteshe slams the doorI stopthinking about her。That one brought a smile to my face。 Now if I have a bad interaction with someone in life， I think "Refrigerator Light" and it is easier to move on with my day， rather than dwelling on I was given this book in a promotion by Goodreads in exchange for an honest reiew。 Sometimes you want a small poem。 This collection has some good ones。 I like how you can get the entirety of an experience boiled down to a few words。 For example:Refrigerator LightThe minuteshe slams the doorI stopthinking about her。That one brought a smile to my face。 Now if I have a bad interaction with someone in life， I think "Refrigerator Light" and it is easier to move on with my day， rather than dwelling on it。 There are some others in this book that brought this type of joy to me and others that still have me scratching my head， not sure I really have clicked with the poem。 This collection has something for everyone。 。。。more
Raegan
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-Disclaimer: I won this book for free through Goodreads giveaways in exchange for an honest review。-Most poems were simple and didn't add much value。 I did like that they were short。 A few were insightful and different from the norm。 Overall， not horrible but not decent either， for there being 128 poems。The worst poems:Medium and Message， pg。 67If John Keats had ever held in his handa photograph of Marilyn Monroe，his mind would have been blown twice， at once。This just isn't right to say。 Morning -Disclaimer: I won this book for free through Goodreads giveaways in exchange for an honest review。-Most poems were simple and didn't add much value。 I did like that they were short。 A few were insightful and different from the norm。 Overall， not horrible but not decent either， for there being 128 poems。The worst poems:Medium and Message， pg。 67If John Keats had ever held in his handa photograph of Marilyn Monroe，his mind would have been blown twice， at once。This just isn't right to say。 Morning Walk， pg。 109The dog stops oftento sniff the poems of othersbefore reciting her own。This is just dumb。The best poems:Creative Writing pg。 20When I told a student not to use single quotation marksaround lines of dialogue，he told me that all our wordsare already inside the quotation marksthat God placed around Creation。View from a Bridge pg。 87I never thoughtof myselfas a little universeinside a big oneuntil just now。Other favorites: The Sociologist， Teenager， Twisting Time， Falling Asleep， View， A Small Hotel， Zen Backfire， Departure， Summer， The English Professor， Reclining on Clouds， Bad Hotel。 。。。more
James
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A collection of short poems， tiny kernels of wisdom， humor， and irony condensed to their essences from the always entertaining Billy Collins。 [I received an advanced e-copy of this book through #Netgalley。 The book is due out in November 2022。]
Ecem Yücel
，
Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review。 "Musical Tables" is a book of small poems by Billy Collins。 At the end of the book， Collins indicates that "small poems are drastic examples of poetry's way of squeezing large content into tight spaces"， and he does that with every poem in this book， whether they are one-liners， or have several lines。 Each poem depicts a different picture in a playful， humorous， and masterful way， Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review。 "Musical Tables" is a book of small poems by Billy Collins。 At the end of the book， Collins indicates that "small poems are drastic examples of poetry's way of squeezing large content into tight spaces"， and he does that with every poem in this book， whether they are one-liners， or have several lines。 Each poem depicts a different picture in a playful， humorous， and masterful way， triggering the whole imagination of its reader with only so many words。 I have several favorite poems in this book but the one that keeps lingering is this:"A MemoryIt came back to menot in the waya thing might be returnedto its rightful ownerbut like dance musictraveling in the darkfrom one endof a lake to the other。"Even in small poems， Billy Collins is amazing at preserving the strength and the emotion the words emit， which makes this book of poems a great reading experience， just like other poetry books of Collins。 。。。more
Jim Higgins
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4。5 stars
Natalie
，
A very quick read， as the poems are all very short。 I really liked the little snapshots， as I saw them。 Billy Collins writes with humor at times， but also with sadness at others。 Sometimes just a few lines are incredibly powerful。 I'd like to read more of his work。 A very quick read， as the poems are all very short。 I really liked the little snapshots， as I saw them。 Billy Collins writes with humor at times， but also with sadness at others。 Sometimes just a few lines are incredibly powerful。 I'd like to read more of his work。 。。。more
M
，
In my MFA program， it was unpopular to like Billy Collins， and I could understand why。 My program was filled with people who wanted to write poetry that lasted longer than that odd taste on the tongue and though I would argue that some of Collins's poems are worthy of bringing into the classroom （which I do）， I know many of his poems melt and are forgotten。I will admit that there are poems by Collins that I love。 I will admit that it makes sense he was chosen for Poet Laureate。 He is an excellen In my MFA program， it was unpopular to like Billy Collins， and I could understand why。 My program was filled with people who wanted to write poetry that lasted longer than that odd taste on the tongue and though I would argue that some of Collins's poems are worthy of bringing into the classroom （which I do）， I know many of his poems melt and are forgotten。I will admit that there are poems by Collins that I love。 I will admit that it makes sense he was chosen for Poet Laureate。 He is an excellent non-poet's poet。 He's easily understood and kind of affable on the page。 But--this collection is perhaps the best example of why my cohort did not love Collins。 I appreciated the note in the back of the book about short poems and the importance of them--I agree。 There are so many short poems that zing and are delicious and worth that permanence。 These poems usually *do something* though， whereas the poems in Collins's forthcoming book felt little more than the poetry equivalent of bad dad jokes。 I think if the brief poems were contrasted with some longer ones， there would have been more punch， but in a litany using a fairly similar technique each time， they felt un-unique and unsurprising to me。A miss for me。 I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Kasa Cotugno
，
Further proof that Billy Collins deserves every accolade he receives。 His trademark humor interspersed with wisdom， all presented in tiny packages。
Laura Vogt
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I enjoyed this collection of micropoems。 It had the same wit， humor， insight and simple prose of COLLINS' other collections， just -- shorter。 I found it at times fun， poignant and refreshing。 Recommended if you enjoy micropoetry or COLLINS' other work。 I enjoyed this collection of micropoems。 It had the same wit， humor， insight and simple prose of COLLINS' other collections， just -- shorter。 I found it at times fun， poignant and refreshing。 Recommended if you enjoy micropoetry or COLLINS' other work。 。。。more
Catherine Pratt
，
This book is filled with short poems。 This book is an "Ah - Ha" book。 You read the poem and not understand what its talking about until you read it like 3 times， then the ah ha comes。 Even though its a fast read and loaded with short poems， I loved it。 Its very thought provoking。 Also I loved the title of the book and the cover 。 That little cow on the cover was so cute and I could not pass it off。 Glad I didnt。 Loved the book and hopefully I get to read more of his books。I received a free copy This book is filled with short poems。 This book is an "Ah - Ha" book。 You read the poem and not understand what its talking about until you read it like 3 times， then the ah ha comes。 Even though its a fast read and loaded with short poems， I loved it。 Its very thought provoking。 Also I loved the title of the book and the cover 。 That little cow on the cover was so cute and I could not pass it off。 Glad I didnt。 Loved the book and hopefully I get to read more of his books。I received a free copy of the book and is voluntary writing a review。 。。。more
Lindy
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Used Books is a new favorite of mine。 The book of small poems is impactful， and at times incredibly humorous。 There were poems in here that made me chuckle， others that cause an intake of breath and realization， and yet some still that I relate to profoundly。 Billy Collins proves that he is always one to come back to。
The Voracious Bibliophile
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***Note: I received a free digital review copy of this book from NetGalley and Random House in exchange for an honest review。***My first introduction to Billy Collins and his work was in my high school sophomore English class reading “Introduction to Poetry”。 I’m including the text of it below， courtesy of Poetry Foundation:I ask them to take a poemand hold it up to the lightlike a color slideor press an ear against its hive。I say drop a mouse into a poemand watch him probe his way out，or walk i ***Note: I received a free digital review copy of this book from NetGalley and Random House in exchange for an honest review。***My first introduction to Billy Collins and his work was in my high school sophomore English class reading “Introduction to Poetry”。 I’m including the text of it below， courtesy of Poetry Foundation:I ask them to take a poemand hold it up to the lightlike a color slideor press an ear against its hive。I say drop a mouse into a poemand watch him probe his way out，or walk inside the poem’s roomand feel the walls for a light switch。I want them to waterskiacross the surface of a poemwaving at the author’s name on the shore。But all they want to dois tie the poem to a chair with ropeand torture a confession out of it。They begin beating it with a hoseto find out what it really means。© 1988， 1996 Billy Collins。 Source: https://www。poetryfoundation。org/poem。。。。Since that fateful day， I myself no longer try to “torture a confession” out of the poems I read。 I simply spend time with them， ruminating on them。 Some poems reveal all of their truths at once while others can take anywhere from years to never to come into the light。 The best poems， at least in my opinion， are the ones you can’t explain but that make you feel something deep stirring within you。All of that said， I think that Musical Tables is one of his best collections yet。 More than 125 new poems are contained therein and all of them are short。 If brevity is indeed the soul of wit， there’s enough wit in these 176 pages to confound King Solomon。 Don’t expect any of the poems in this collection to smack you over the head with their profundity。 While some of them are indeed deeply insightful， oftentimes whimsical and playful， none of them are preeners。 They simply stand in front of the reader naked and say， “This is what you get， like it or not。” Some made me chuckle。 Others made me pause ever so briefly to think。 It’s exactly that brand of self-effacing yet utterly winning that keeps me coming back to Billy Collins and his work through the years。While I can’t share the text of them here， not just yet anyway， I will tell you that my favorite poems from Collins’s newest collection are （in no particular order）: “The Dead of Winter”， “Headstones”， “The Sociologist”， “Twisting Time”， “Eyes”， and “Orphans”。Musical Tables: Poems is due to be released on November 15th， 2022 by Random House Publishing Group – Random House and is available to preorder wherever books are sold。***Note: This review appears in slightly different form on my blog， The Voracious Bibliophile， at https://thevoraciousbibliophile。com/2。。。。*** 。。。more
Penelope
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