Like many people (I assume), I read this in addition to The Poet's Companion. It probably deserves to be reviewed in its own right, but being that I approached this as essentially a continuation of the Companion, I'll review it as such.

Generally, I thought it was a better book. Addonizio is a great writer, and the whole time I felt like I was getting earnest and caring advice from somebody invested in my future. It felt a bit more personal, while the Companion was more of a clinical instruction guide. The latter may be more useful, if you can only read one book or the other. And if somebody came to me and asked for one book they could read to get started on poetry, I'd probably give them the Poet's Companion. That being said, this one is definitely my preference. I got more out of it, I think, but only because of the foundational understanding established in the companion. That isn't to say that this is more advanced or a direct sequel, just that I was more willing to explore the emotional meaning of being a poet once I felt comfortable with the nuts and bolts. It's just how I am, and how many probably feel given the intimidating nature of starting poetry.

The writing exercises weren't quite as helpful, I think, but they were still good. I obviously didn't do all of the offered practices, but the ones I did were fine. The sections of rhythm and revision were particularly helpful, while the parts on publishing seemed to cover very little ground beyond what was already talked about (in more depth) within the Poet's Companion.

In terms of actual "readability" as a book, beyond it's helpfulness, I thought it did well. I surged through the first 150 pages or so in a day, and then lagged a bit in the latter half. Part of this is that the latter sections contained more integral stuff for me, so I was taking notes and pictures and marking poets I wanted to check out. But it's also because the book begins with a genuinely warming introduction that really gave me energy to chew through the whole book. That energy wasn't entirely sustained, but that didn't prevent me from continuing to be interested.

This is probably too long of a review. You should read this if you're on this page checking it out. I assume anyone with interest is trying to become a poet, or is on the fence about it. If so, this is worth checking out in addition to the Poet's Companion. If you have to pick one, it really depends on what you're looking for (read both). ( )

Won this book from the Fraser Valley Poetry contest.