Undivided Attention - 481

There is no escaping Milton Bates’s Michigan, his lifelong knowledge of places and people. From thimbleberries to mushrooms, flycatchers to geese, the land and seasons inform his Undivided Attention. He writes, “a lake falls from the sky” and I’ve seen it. I know it. Bates creates those image-spaces for readers in his landscapes. Two of my favorite poems begin with the word “first.” “First”tells readers that they must read this to fully understand what follows. Firsts are the experiences we return to throughout life, as he does in “My First Deer.” Beautifully and inevitably, the final poem refers to “the firstness of final sight.” Milton Bates is a writer who promises to give his undivided attention to life right up until the end. I admire that. —Elizabeth Kerlikowske, author of The Vaudeville Horse The precise, evocative descriptions in this wonderful collection demonstrate that Milton Bates has been giving his undivided attention to the natural world, especially the sights and sounds of Upper Michigan. Birds, in particular, have caught his eye. Eagles, hawks, ravens, jays, nuthatches, and others perch and soar through these pages. Bates goes beyond simply cataloguing their appearance and behavior. Many of the poems (“Learning How to Be a Bird,” “Chosen,” and “Tomales Bay Ravens” are a few examples) reveal how observations of bird behavior help us understand our place in the world. Similarly, the poems that closely examine human habitat and behavior (“Living Room,” for instance) touch right to the heart of our lives. Undivided Attention is full of beautiful, wise poems. —Larry Watson, author of Late Assignments and the novel Let Him Go
ASIN: 1639806830
VSKU: BVV.1639806830.G
Condition: Good
Author/Artist:Bates, Milton J.
Binding: Paperback