George BilgereBesprekingen

Heard GB on Garrison Keillor's radio show. Not sure if he is every man's poet but he sure is mine. Many of these poems hit home welling up emotions on recognizing similarities to my early family life. GB has a way of using standard English words that made me note how perfect they were in his sentences. Kind of like a poet would.... Will definitely read more.½

great observer and great voice

Bilgere is great at the short poem. Striking and clear imagery, often with a profound twist. He writes in the tradition of Frost and Kooser.

Some excellent poems, a few quite hilariously funny, but .not as good a collection as some of his others.

If you like Billy Collins, you'll love George Bilgere. His poetry is similarly humorous and accessible, and it's prone to the same delightful leaps of thought. There's a poem that features Beyonce prominently, a poem about teaching English as a second language, and a poem about rediscovering a favorite centerfold while throwing out old magazines. But often, just when you're lulled into thinking Haywire is all fun and games, you read the next line and find that this has all been an easy entry into something incredibly poignant. My favorites from the book: "Olympics" and "Chinese."