DOOR

Some listeners, even those familiar with contemporary poetry, may have trouble following the poems in Ann Lauterbach's collection. They deliberately explode the connections between cause and effect, text and meaning. In doing so, they intentionally depart from prosaic syntax. The author's phrasing does reflect each poem's arrangement on the page, but that arrangement is also unconventional so that even with repeated hearings--and these poems do deserve repeated hearings--some of the sense may be lost without a printed text for reference. Those familiar with Lauterbach's work, however, will find her rough timbre and overall performance gripping. D.M.H. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2023]