Between Two Gardens by Laura Quinn Guidry, Alamo Bay Press (March 2, 2017)
Reviewed by Varsha Saraiya-Shah
Guidry’s book of poems, Between Two Gardens, takes the reader through her life’s journeys from sunrise to sunset, through a deeply lived life of love and loss while staying close to the natural world at all times - whether it’s a grey fox or cardinal, pet dog or deer, “Mother Oaks” or a cow. Her work displays the art and power of a poet’s two best friends: observation and a keen listening ear. In this volume, her subjects range widely from fishing with her father, to musing on a moon, silence vs. peace of a morning or by the graveside, or introspecting over her son’s loss as well as the empty nest after her daughter gets her wings, and relating to a teenage experience as a spiritual adult. Her wisdom and craft are served with care and brings the reader face to face with spirit, long past or still in front of our eyes.
Guidry as a poet draws and imparts the gift of each poem from the well of perception as well as her familiarity of a quotidian life and she has done it well!
In “Tommy,“ she portrays the crush of young love and its brush against death, the former always winning effortlessly. From magical, dream-like experience in “Flight,” to an anecdotal love poem, “Fishing with my father,” to a stunning ekphrastic work in “Red” about a live dragonfly seen from a child’s memory and adult’s mind, Guidry’s work is endearing and comforting to read while intellectually stimulating and full of surprises.
The space between familial love and natural habitat of a home, Between Two Gardens provides an intimate shelter to the reader without personal imposition. Guidry with her minimalistic style has painted her poetry with engaging sensitivity.
Guidry as a poet draws and imparts the gift of each poem from the well of perception as well as her familiarity of a quotidian life and she has done it well!
In “Tommy,“ she portrays the crush of young love and its brush against death, the former always winning effortlessly. From magical, dream-like experience in “Flight,” to an anecdotal love poem, “Fishing with my father,” to a stunning ekphrastic work in “Red” about a live dragonfly seen from a child’s memory and adult’s mind, Guidry’s work is endearing and comforting to read while intellectually stimulating and full of surprises.
The space between familial love and natural habitat of a home, Between Two Gardens provides an intimate shelter to the reader without personal imposition. Guidry with her minimalistic style has painted her poetry with engaging sensitivity.
