Imaginary Income

Owen's ( Zombie Notes ) seventh collection of poetry is full of kinetic language and provocative lines. Startling images propel the poems into powerful registers: ``as though a blow from an unforseen fist had / darkened the afternoon.'' These poems charm by their ability to move through the everyday world, describing and commenting on it with precision and often humor: ``he's got a heart like an iron lung.'' At times the revelations are like a series of small explosions that break apart the ice of the everyday to reveal human relations frozen solid. An energetic voice at work in this book struggles with the banality of modern life in America. To this end Owen utilizes sarcasm, surreal turns and twists of language itself. Sometimes this struggle is abandoned, and clever observations leave the reader empty-handed. In spite of this, the risks these poems take merit scrutiny. (Feb.)