Without by Donald Hall

Without- Donald Hall

81 pages

Rating: 5/5

Gracie picked this book of poetry as her sixth pick for the challenge. I read this book years ago and had forgotten it. Without by Donald Hall is a book of twenty poems about love and grief. In 1972 Hall married Jane Kenyon, a fellow poet. Kenyon died in 1995 of cancer and this book is Hall's tribute to her. So many of the poems are written in third-person and the grief lingers on every word. I think that Hall probably couldn't write about such intimate things in first-person. The pain was too great. At times I had to put the book down because I was trying not to cry. There were few poems that I like every part of. But I got somethiing out of every poem. One poem that I do love every part of is Last Days. It tells of Kenyon being told that the bone marrow transplant didn't work and she was going to die. Phone calls had to be made, funeral arrangements planned, last good-byes had to be said. I felt the horror of it so fully. The horror of being diagnoised with cancer and then dying of it. This book made me think of Dana. Dana, I'm so glad you are well. I'm so glad you are alive. I hope soon cancer will be a thing of the past. A good book for everyone to read about love, life, grief, and death. Thanks Gracie for the recommendation.

Vasilly