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The Asparagus Feast |
eBook Available
Once she woke me in the streaky dark
to savour one of her delights -
"larks against bells," she called it.
We carried our coffees down to the minty garden
and waited ankle-deep in dew.
Across the shallow valley,
the early traffic crept in glimmers
through the groundmist. At dawn
the cannonade of bells from the Certosa -
as she had promised -
did not drown out small songs.
--from Loquacious Philomel
to savour one of her delights -
"larks against bells," she called it.
We carried our coffees down to the minty garden
and waited ankle-deep in dew.
Across the shallow valley,
the early traffic crept in glimmers
through the groundmist. At dawn
the cannonade of bells from the Certosa -
as she had promised -
did not drown out small songs.
--from Loquacious Philomel
Details
Part of the Hugh MacLennan Poetry Series (number 5 in series)
128 Pages
ISBN 9780773519039
October 1999
Formats: Paperback, eBook
"A wise and learned voice ... accomplished, beautiful, and moving poems." The Globe and Mail
"A feast indeed it is: rich in language and imagery, delicately flavoured with allusions gleaned from extensive reading and travel, peppered with a mischievous wit." The Malahat Review
"The Asparagus Feast generates passion all the more stunning by its reserve, a torment rendered palpable by its tight-lipped presentation." The Fiddlehead
"Many styles evoke many moods - the battle-scarred indifference of a World War II troop ship entering the Coral Sea, the tentative groping towards 'the halfspeed of convalescence' of surgical patients in the recovery room, tender gratitude for friends and lovers whose intimacy is a gift as wild and unexpected as the asparagus feast of the title. And everywhere that rarity: eloquence." Susan Glickman.
"Strong stuff, in meticulous verse: I was sorry to finish reading." Jay Macpherson.
"A feast indeed it is: rich in language and imagery, delicately flavoured with allusions gleaned from extensive reading and travel, peppered with a mischievous wit." The Malahat Review
"The Asparagus Feast generates passion all the more stunning by its reserve, a torment rendered palpable by its tight-lipped presentation." The Fiddlehead
"Many styles evoke many moods - the battle-scarred indifference of a World War II troop ship entering the Coral Sea, the tentative groping towards 'the halfspeed of convalescence' of surgical patients in the recovery room, tender gratitude for friends and lovers whose intimacy is a gift as wild and unexpected as the asparagus feast of the title. And everywhere that rarity: eloquence." Susan Glickman.
"Strong stuff, in meticulous verse: I was sorry to finish reading." Jay Macpherson.
The late S.P. Zitner (1924-2005) lectured at Trinity College in the University of Toronto since 1969. His poems have appeared in Accent, The Dalhousie Review, Poetry, The Nation, and numerous other magazines.
