A Fraction of Darkness

As the San Francisco Review of Books has written: “In Pastan’s world, a poem is not just anything; it is more than some ‘inspired’ words strung together casually. She earns each poem, line by line, insight by insight, felt emotion by felt emotion. She reminds us of the origin of the word poet: ‘maker’ . . . . Pastan can be read by anyone—and enjoyed. And she deserves to be. More important, people who read books on the latest political, economic, sociological, and psychological concerns should put Pastan on their list. So should people who read novels. In her work there is a return to the role of the poet as it served the human race for centuries: to fuel our thinking, show us our world in new ways, and to get us to feel more intensely.”