"Quite simply, Komunyakaa is one of the most extraordinary poets writing today...He takes on the most complex moral issues, the most harrowing ugly subjects of our American life. His voice, whether it embodies the specific experiences of a black man, a soldier in Vietnam, or a child in Bogalusa, Louisiana, is universal. It shows us in ever deeper ways what it is to be human."—Toi Derricotte, Kenyon Review"Komunyakaa's best poems are jazzy and improvisational, razor-sharp pieces that tell us more about our culture than any news broadcast"—Bloomsbury Review"This collection is comprised of poems from seven of Komunyakaa's previous collections. A master at interweaving memory and history to shape his experiences into narratives, he enriches his poems with details . . . As an African American, he defines a culture with striking imagery that is often misunderstood by mainstream readers. Highly recommended"—Library Journal"Quite simply, Komunyakaa is one of the most extraordinary poets writing todayHe takes on the most complex moral issues, the most harrowing ugly subjects of our American life. His voice, whether it embodies the specific experiences of a black man, a soldier in Vietnam, or a child in Bogalusa, Louisiana, is universal. It shows us in ever deeper ways what it is to be human."—Toi Derricotte, Kenyon Review"Yusef Komunyakaa is a poet whose work, over ten years and many books, continues to grow in complexity and beauty, Neon Vernacular includes some of the best Vietnam testimony, in verse or prose, that I've ever read. Komunyakaa's whole oeuvre explores and re/members the double consciousness at work in the construction of African-American male identity."—Marilyn Hacker, The Nation
This collection is comprised of poems from seven of Komunyakaa's previous collections. A master at interweaving memory and history to shape his experiences into narratives, Komunyakaa enriches his poems with details: ``His fingernails are black/ & torn from blows,/ as if the hammer/ declares its own angle of reference.'' Music has its special force with a rhythm that seems to enforce meaning: ``Heartstring. Blessed wood/ and every moment the thing's made of:/ ball of fatback/ licked by fingers of fire.'' As an African American, Komunyakaa defines a culture with striking imagery that is often misunderstood by mainstream readers. Highly recommended for public and academic libraries. --Lenard D. Moore, United Arts Council of Raleigh & Wake Cty., N.C.
