A review of Meg Dolan's Story: Reflective Poetry
“Transforming orange to cinder/ blown by winds of autumn breeze” (p.7)
Story Reflective Poetry: by Meg Dolan is the latest piece of poetry to flow through the Red Room Company’s wide collection of literature. This is an excellent book if you just want to take a moment out of your busy day and ponder things which really matter to you. The poems are refreshing they allow the reader to consider nature and relationships. If you are a person who enjoys sitting under a tree and drinking a beverage whilst reading whimsical poetry, this is for you.
Meg Dolan’s voice is clearly expressed within the suite as she does not use complex language. Rather when you absorb the text, you feel as if you are having a pleasant, yet purposeful conversation with the author whilst contemplating your experiences. This feature is enjoyable as the audience does not have to overanalyse the context behind each poem and therefore, can make a definition of their own.
One of the most alluring factors about Story: Reflective Poetry are the haiku’s, images and vignettes. Although these short pieces are quite brief, they reveal consise philosophical echoes of Dolan’s life. I made sure to note pages 12 and 13 as ‘simple, yet delightful’. My favourite quote was from the vignette “Spoils” as it claimed “a Spartan in a garden devours his peanut butter”. I found the sentence to be curious and comical.
Another great point about this suite of poetry is that it transports you between places. Dolan writes poetry about her time in Japan, France and even comments upon the Australian culture. An excellent example come from the poem “Japanese Flower Temples” quoting “A foreign breeze/ The blooms lay perfectly slanted/ Encircling the water path” (p.74). The language used provides a very vivid image within your mind’s eye.
Dolan’s assortment of poetry provokes the thought about what is important to you in your life at the moment. More often than not, we all get so engrossed in our daily lives that we forget what really matters overall. The kinds of bonds we form with people or with the environment, does in fact impact us positively. The book is holistic in the sense that it helps you realign with these beliefs. As I was reading the text, I realised that the space I was in was so wholesome because I was surrounded by my very spectacular and loving team at the Red Room Company.
Overall, Story: Reflective Poetry by Meg Dolan is a great read. I warmed up to the book the further I read and reviewed myself, whilst establishing my own personal meaning to each poem. If your interests match up with nature, relationships and travel, you should definitely buy this collection. You can purchase a copy here here »
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Angelene Karas is a volunteer at The Red Room Company. She considers herself an aspiring poet, artist and teacher. Her passions in life are being inspired by authors, artists and oh yeah, coffee. She is a wizz in all things Simpsons, and can recite many lines (and shamefully whole songs) from a variety of episodes. You can generally catch her stressing about assignments and university in general, or attempting to crack jokes which are not all that funny.