Lost Alphabet
By Lisa Olstein
(Copper Canyon Press, Paperback, 9781556593017, 92pp.)
Publication Date: July 2009
Categories: American - General
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Description
Poetry. In Lisa Olstein's daring new book, an unnamed lepidopterist--living in a hut on the edge of an unnamed village--is drawn ever deeper into the engrossing world of moths, light, and seeing. Structured as a naturalist's notebook, the four-part sequence of prose poems create a layered pilgrimage into the consequences of intensive study, the trials of being an outsider, and the process of metamorphosis. In an interview, Olstein once said, "I don't want poetry to limit itself to reflecting or recapitulating experience; I want it to be an experience." "Vivid, arresting detail"--Publishers Weekly. "This poet brings a sparkling consciousness to the page and an exciting new voice to American poetry"--Library Journal.











