One of the greatest joys of reading a collection of 'selected poems' by a poet, is the ability to see the progression of a poet's style. Selected Poems by Mark Strand is a very well laid-out collection in that poems are grouped according to chronological order. The book was originally published in 1979, but was reissued in 1990 to coincide with the publishing of his book The Continuous Life and his selection as Poet Laureate of the United States for that year.
Poems in the earliest group are culled from Strand's 1964 collection, Sleeping With One Eye Open. These poems give the reader a glimpse at the early Strand style -- reminiscent of Hemmingway, but with a surreal quality that is not as dry as much of Hemmingway's prose. A good example is these lines from "Keeping Things Whole":
In a field
I am the absense
of field.
This is
always the case.
Wherever I am
I am what is missing.
By the time readers reach the final section of poems, it should be easy for them to see why Strand was chosen to be Poet Laureate. His poems achieve a wonderful depth of emotion without losing their slightly surreal quality. His poems are accessible to the average reader. He has no obscured agenda hidden under abstractions and enigmas.
For example, these lines are taken from "The Garden", from his 1978 collection, The Late Hour:
And when my father bends
to whisper in her ear,
when they rise to leave
and the swallows dart
and the moon and stars
have drifted off together, it shines.
Poet Laureates are not "born", they are cultivated. Seeing the progression of one gives you an idea of the work needed to hone and finesse a poet's individual style over his or her lifetime.
