The Still Position: A Verse Memoir of My Mother's Death

Poet and playwright Blatner (No Star Shines Sharper) chronicles the last five days of her dying mother's life in a simple, straight-forward, and heartbreakingly poignant collection. The poems are structured as a countdown, grouped by days: "with four days/ to live in, pleasures/ are few." Her poems document the "steepening cheekbones" of her mother's complexion and other depictions of deterioration from "mild alcohol-related dementia" while delving into the complexity of family relationships%E2%80%94Sadie (her mother's caretaker) and her husband Crow play prominent roles along with Blatner's sister, brother and husband. Set in upstate New York, nature serves to show the mind's preoccupation: Blatner writes, "a hawk/ is flying./ and I am thinking:/ it doesn't matter/ that you neglected us/ got drunk at us/ charmed us/ divided us." Blatner's portrayal of grief is so successful%E2%80%94universally and specifically%E2%80%94that at times it's hard to sit with. (Apr.)