Poetry. There is a singular pleasure in very short poems. David Giannini's reach in many directions: sharp observation, laughter, love, grief, irony, bitterness, wonderment. Reading these poems I kept wondering if there are some themes so wide that only a very short poem can handle them.You want a poem on love? How about death? Maybe the weather, autumn leaves, an owl, a coyote, chestnuts, a breakfast spoon, a parent's casket? Poems like these fit snugly into the real world. At the same time, they are sinewy objects that concentrate all of the poet's 'powers.' I guess that means this book is a medicine bundle.--Andrew Schelling