Roundabout

Intense and intimate, the poems in Amy M. Clark’s splendid second collection, Roundabout, plunge us into a cherished, safe microcosm of two (a mother and a son) that is perpetually threatened, if not by school violence, then by the violence of seemingly safe streets populated by children in parkas and runners in crosswalks. The terrifying ambivalence of American life, with its combination of privilege and love underpinned by specters of fear and abuse, manifests in every page of Roundabout—all balanced by Clark’s near-miraculous craft. No surprise this poet is also a dancer—the triolets that structure each section almost dance off the page. It’s hope for new relationships and a boy’s learning that lift up Clark’s voice and make Roundabout a prism for a modern woman’s modern life. —Molly Peacock