Only As the Day Is Long

by Dorianne Laux
Only As the Day Is Long cover
Good Books rating 4.5
Poetry
Technical:
  • ID: 761
  • Added: 2025-09-19
  • Updated: 2025-09-20
  • ISBN: 9780393652345
  • Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
  • Published: 2019-01-15
  • Formats: 11
  • Reviews: 3
Buy online
Waterstones
Paperback • £12.99

Dorianne Laux's 'Only as the Day Is Long' is a compelling collection of poetry that spans her expansive career, including twenty new odes dedicated to her mother. The poems delve into themes of survival, healing, and the complexities of love, showcasing Laux's earthy and lyrical style. This volume represents a brilliant body of work from a poet renowned for her insight and craft./n/nThe collection draws from Laux's five previous award-winning volumes, offering a comprehensive look at her evolution as a poet. Her writing is both clear and compelling, capturing the essence of human experiences with vivid imagery and emotional depth. Whether exploring personal relationships or broader existential themes, Laux's poetry resonates with readers seeking both beauty and truth.

Reviews
Ordinary Plots · 2022-07-20
profound 4.25

The collection is full of grace and understanding, capturing the fragility of life and the need for love.

This collection is full of grace and understanding, capturing the bound-ness of life and our inherent frailty. The poems explore the human condition with a deep sense of empathy and compassion. The reviewer appreciates the poet's ability to convey the complexities of human experience, making the collection a profound and moving read. The themes of love, loss, and resilience are woven throughout the poems, creating a tapestry of emotional depth and resonance.

Quick quotes

    It is full of grace.

    It understands, I think, the bound-ness of this life, the fact of our frailty, and how our frailty begs for us to be loved whole.

    The themes of love, loss, and resilience are woven throughout the poems.

Literary Matters · 2020-10-25
powerful 4.50

The book takes the reader through the poet's life, marked by survival and resilience. The poems are deeply personal and evoke a raw emotional response.

This collection is a journey through the poet's life, from her formative years marked by abuse to her later experiences. The poems are deeply personal and evoke a raw emotional response, showcasing the poet's ability to turn pain into powerful art. The reviewer highlights the poet's resilience and the authenticity of her voice, making the collection a compelling read. The poems are arranged chronologically, which adds a layer of depth to the narrative, allowing readers to see the evolution of the poet's voice and style over time.

Quick quotes

    The book's journey takes the reader from the poet's formative years, in which she survived sexual and physical abuse, through a lifetime that ...

    Her poems are deeply personal and evoke a raw emotional response.

    The authenticity of her voice makes the collection a compelling read.

Zingara Poet · 2020-07-05
brilliant 4.75

The volume is superbly curated, representing the best of a lifetime's work. The poems are arranged chronologically, showcasing the poet's evolution.

This collection is a beautifully curated volume, representing the best of the poet's lifetime work. The poems are arranged chronologically, starting with selections from her first publications and moving through to her most recent work. This arrangement allows readers to see the evolution of her style and themes over time. The reviewer praises the consistency and depth of the poems, highlighting the poet's ability to capture the essence of human experience in her verse.

Quick quotes

    Only as the Day Is Long is a superbly curated volume, the best of a life's work.

    Poems are arranged chronologically, starting with selections from Laux's first ...

    This arrangement allows readers to see the evolution of her style and themes over time.

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