An Undercurrent of Jitters

“Carol Levin’s An Undercurrent of Jitters is a book of poems about weddings and

marriages, whether longed for or forced or joyfully jumped into, whether failed

or extremely happy. The poems are engaging, insightful, and well-wrought—a joy

to read.”

—Priscilla Long, author of Crossing Over: Poems

“The ‘undercurrent of jitters’ serving as Carol Levin’s title belongs to strangers at

a USO dance in Texas shortly before the young men leave for war. Two of these

strangers become a couple and join the confluences of encounters, indelible

moments, narratives, and palpable atmospheres characterizing the complex

terrain of marriage. Peaks and troughs as well as nerves beneath the surface of the

poems illuminate the how and why, and sometimes the confusion, of intention

and commitment. Levin’s attuned eye and ear navigate unfolding explorations

leading back, forward, or within myriad instances relating to wedlock. These

poems comprise a mosaic of inlaid particulars alive with authentic memorable

human resonances.”

—Joan Fiset, author of Namesake