Helen of Troy, 1993

In Zoccola’s exceptional debut, The Iliad’s Helen of Troy is reimagined as a wistful Tennessee housewife, dissatisfied with her marriage and wasted potential and reliving the glory days of her youth. If the premise sounds contrived, the execution delivers something unexpectedly magical. Helen’s life is far from stereotypically bereft, as evidenced in the hilariously histrionic “helen of troy runs to piggly wiggly”: “the pig is the place where all desire/ is consummated, each want made fat, made starch, made bone-in-flesh... sing, muse, of the manager’s special, two-for-one on yogurt cups,/ little debbies leaping for the cart.” The narrative through line involves Helen having an affair but ultimately returning to her husband (whom she refers to throughout as “the big cheese”) and daughter. She speaks in the aftermath of the affair of wanting more for her child than she has had: “gods of birds// who speak in human voices, i do not want to watch/ her walk through a life of small mercies and small choices./ I want each tooth spit up clean and delivered to her palm/ to plant as she chooses.” Zoccola provides a winning combination of humor and enough pathos to make Homer proud. Accessible yet deep, this will be adored by seasoned poetry fans and casual readers alike. (Jan.)