I second Alicia's comments [oops, I meant Catherine's comments], though I would single out the following for special praise:
You cannot help but think how they were lost:
The quarry, fletched shaft in its flank, the blood
Whose trail soon vanished in the antlered wood,
Not just the meat, but what the weapon cost--
The obseration itself is fascinating (I personally never stopped to reflect about how they were lost, though it's a fascinating question). And in a world where poets are warned against using too many adjectives, "fletched shaft" and "antlered wood" are so marvelous that the warning should be modified: don't use adjectives unless they're unusually precise and evocative, and sound great. (I also like the consonance of fletched and flank).
I can't wait to buy the issue and read her other poems as well.
[This message has been edited by Roger Slater (edited May 04, 2002).]
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