Patrick Allen Wright

For a Fish to Soar Patrick Allen Wright

For a Fish to Soar is a book of 100 poems arranged into five (5) sections with an Afterword. It has the standard Acknowledgments, a dedication page, and the Contents. The sections of poems are: I. Knowing So Much of the Earth; II. That Nature Will Provide; III. And Wants Her by His Side; IV. Necessary for a Fish to Soar; and V. I Pray for Rain, Yet Still. I. Knowing So Much of the Earth includes seventeen (17) poems, focusing mostly on natural settings at beaches, ponds, rivers, and streams. The poems establish a spiritual leaning toward ecological concerns. The poems range in length from several pages to haiku and couplet. II. That Nature Will Provide includes twenty-one (21) poems, focusing on more pastoral settings. A spiritual, zen-ish theme continues from the first section and builds appreciation for nature. The poems range in length from haiku and couplet up to a full page or two. III. And Wants Her by His Side contains eighteen (18) poems, incorporating nature, aging, love, and love lost. The pastoral settings sometimes become a classroom for living and coping. Here, the poem lengths vary from couplet and haiku length to a full page. IV. Necessary for a Fish to Soar presents twenty-three (23) poems, including the titular poem "Dauntless." The poems address poetics and the somewhat spiritual origins and inspirations for poems. The zen-ish or Taoist emphases become clearer, as do the more Western ideas of God and gods. Some poems express societal elements. The poems range in length from couplet and haiku to a couple of pages. V. I Pray for Rain, Yet Still brings in twenty-one (21) poems of darker tidings, such as abuse, death, indiscretions, illness, and other issues of humanity. Rural settings dominate, but a few poems address the effects of Vietnam Era service and homecoming. However, this section, and thus the collection of poems, ends with a more upbeat note. The poems range from several pages to haiku length. The Afterword comprises five pages of discussing poetics: "Poetic Signature" gives some insight for the development of writer's voice and reader's response. "Empathy" helps to clarify the relationship between readers, writers, and poems. "The Poet's Chore" briefly touches on a writer's preparation, purpose, and the writing process. "Maker Making" culminates the discussion of poetics with a few words melding the genesis of poems culturally, touching on some Asian ideas for poets and poems.