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<\/p>\nUniversity of Akron Press,\u00a0May 2023<\/p>\n
68 pages<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Emily Corwin\u2019s third full-length book of poetry, Marble Orchard<\/em>, subverts expectations of how we talk about anxiety and depression. This graveyard is divided into four sections that tackle mental health issues and physical ailments: \u201cdelicate as organ,\u201d \u201cmy black sleigh,\u201d \u201cthe wicked accident,\u201d and \u201ca field walks through me.\u201d Each of these corresponds to a different framing style: a formal presentation of \u201clunacy,\u201d ekphrasis of film, a collage of voices overheard, and the ekphrasis of paintings.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Though ekphrasis, the use of art as a framing device, is often used as a tool of distance, in Corwin\u2019s latest collection, pieces feel personal and universal. One notable piece, \u201cKat Harvey,\u201d named after the protagonist of the 1995 Casper<\/em> movie, is a portrait of the namesake character:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n to go. Dusty star anise, eyebright, the rosarian says,<\/p>\n good morning<\/em>. And you, what were you like as a living thing?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I\u2019d like to make contact. Can you hurt me? Can I hurt you?<\/p>\n Slither with me to the Lazarus machine, primordial muck.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I\u2019d like to see you not see-through. Can I keep you? Earthy as a<\/p>\n cabbage rose\u2014my woody perennial, my mortal slow dancer.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Corwin uses \u201cKat Harvey\u201d and Casper <\/em>to consider the separation of the mind and the body, and resurrection after a physical and even metaphysical death. The poem uses the movie to craft a painting of herbal medicines such as \u201cdusty star anise,\u201d that suggest healing properties. Death is only addressed with a rhetorical question: \u201cWhat were you like as a living thing?\u201d\u00a0The biblical reference to Lazarus, the name of the machine designed to bring Casper back to life, arises again as \u201ca\/ cabbage rose\u2014my woody perennial.\u201d Here the reader may note \u201cperennial\u201d is a type of plant that comes back to life every spring and could signify the cyclical nature of mental health struggles.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The opening section of the collection, \u201cdelicate as organ,\u201d begins with a bang and contains some of the most compelling pieces in the collection. Its first poem, \u201cLunatic as Abecedarian,\u201d sets us up thematically for the rest of the book. The speaker of these pieces, \u201clived against it – a\/ brutal music; I lived in it in\/ clinics, in dresses disposable.\u201d This section examines \u201clunacy\u201d and \u201clunatic\u201d by employing a myriad of forms that challenge us to reframe our relationship with these words.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Corwin is at her best when she deconstructs and rebuilds the world around her. In one of her \u201cLunatic as Erasure” pieces, readers see an \u201cerasure of Fluoxetine medication guide\u201d that takes medical packaging to create a portrait of what it is like being on an antidepressant.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cthere may be\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 change in mood, behavior,<\/p>\n actions, thoughts, or feelings, especially severe.<\/p>\n acting on dangerous impulses\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Corwin captures the possible contradiction of antidepressants, stabilizing mental health\u2014while potentially delivering terrible side effects. She notes, \u201cif you take too much, call poison control,\u201d highlights the fiction between pill as \u201cmedicine\u201d and hazard.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The “wicked accident\u201d, which consists of a multi-page poem constructed out of conversations overheard in public spaces, was another high point in the collection. Whether Corwin\u2019s intention or not, this piece evoked the motif of \u201cvoices in your head\u201d that is often associated with lunatics, a thread established at the beginning of the book. \u201cI wasn\u2019t there when it happened. You see where the crack started.\u201d Corwin\u2019s disembodied voice chimes two-thirds of the way through the piece. This brilliant landscape skips to a Betty White reference and the meme of the actress being older than sliced bread: \u201cThat was the old Wonder Bread Factory. We used to drive the turnpike\/ to visit Betty.\u201d Corwin subverts expectations, offering us a voice that is reflective, witty, sarcastic, and left me wanting to \u201ccross my fingers,\/ I mean, cross my heart.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Corwin\u2019s Marble Orchard <\/em>delicately balances themes of mental illness with art and found poetry. Though its first section ran slightly long in its dissection of lunacy, Corwin’s meditation on mental illness offers a strong collection that will likely resonate with many readers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" . . .in Corwin\u2019s latest collection, pieces feel personal and universal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":7780,"template":"","categories":[9,139,1569],"tags":[1921,889,347,1922,1923,1706,8],"class_list":["post-7779","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aquifer","category-book-review","category-reviews","tag-alex-gurtis","tag-aquifer","tag-book-review","tag-emily-corwin","tag-marble-orchard","tag-poetry-review","tag-the-florida-review"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n