Articulate as Rain

Poetry. A collection that encompasses the Garden of Eden ("Something for Everything") and the end of the world ("Have It, Eat It"), ARTICULATE AS RAIN is an omnium-gatherum of tones, themes, prosodies, and poetic ploys. With characteristic comedy and surprising darkness, Stephen Kampa explores the relational aspects of our lives-love, faith, metaphysics, our civic selves-while revelling in the ranginess of the English language and in the music of its metrics. Yet for all its variety, this book reminds readers that countless raindrops can belong to the same storm."What first impresses and finally astounds in Stephen Kampa's new collection is the unflagging richness of his invention and virtuosity of his execution, the way in which technical precision allows him to speak to us in an amazing variety of registers. We are privy to existential dilemmas and prone to collapsing in helpless laughter, sometimes on the same page. As was said of Ovid, Stephen does not know when to stop. Good for him and good for us." —Charles Martin"ARTICULATE AS RAIN, Stephen Kampa's latest collection, moves crisply between registers, sounding out 'the revelations / of rhythm' by which a man measures his life. Whether his subject is a tropical cyclone or an overflowing toilet, Kampa renders it with precision and wit, and each poem's intricate architecture expands or contracts to suit the occasion. Elegant, wise, and resolutely tender, these are songs of experience, and Stephen Kampa is a masterful singer." —Caki Wilkinson"Stephen Kampa's poems can 'count the seconds, click by weighted click, / As though they were the tumblers to a safe,' until what has been locked away in darkness-the musings of our moral and ethical lives-is revealed. His classically poised verses make a winningly modern music, and his recurring themes (also classical!) of lust and booze, culture shocks and attenuated verities have never been fresher. Ask Kampa's tattoo artist for the skinny: 'Fate, circumstances, physics, God-will pierce you / More times than you can count.' This book is a boon!" —David Yezzi