Improbable Creatures

Jon Davis' s latest book of poems, Improbable Creatures, is bursting with signature inventiveness and the nimble lyricism that David Foster Wallace once praised as " off-the-charts terrific." Like the characters of a new alphabet, Davis' s creatures form the language of this stunning collection. And from them emerge new meanings for words we only thought we knew- for plumage, for song, for nest.

Some of his creatures vault from the page, playful proxies for his surprising insights. Others e...