Hometown

Peter Baltensperger is the editor and publisher of Moonstone Press and
the author of Arcana.

Although Lush’s poetry has appeared in a variety of literary
magazines, this is her first book of poetry. It has, perhaps, come a bit
too soon. Most of the poems in this first collection work very well on
their own—almost all are sensitive portraits of people, places, and
events—but as a collection they aren’t quite convincing enough.

The book comprises three sections, of which the first (“Hometown”)
is definitely the strongest and most enjoyable. If the entire book
consisted of poems like these, Lush would have an excellent first book
to her credit. As it is, this opening section makes up less than half of
Hometown, and its impact is soon overshadowed by the often unconvincing
selections offered in the next two sections. One wonders, as one reads
on, what happened to the “hometown” focus and the intent of the
title.

The title section is, however, a pleasure to read and shows
considerable talent and promise. The 29 portraits of parents, siblings,
relatives, and friends (even a teacher from back in grade school
somewhere) sparkle with carefully chosen and effectively placed imagery
as they depict the characters and events of the poet’s childhood and
youth. They are all quite short, yet each is just long enough in its
poignancy to contribute to the patchwork of faces and places that make
up Lush’s poetry “hometown” quilt. One only wishes the poet had
continued to work on the same tapestry until it made a uniform and
self-contained whole; the book would have been much more effective and
more enjoyable to read.