Review 36: Poetic Musings by Harry Gilleland, Jr.

Poetic Musings of an Old, Fat Man
by Harry E. Gilleland, Jr.
Copyright: © 2008
$12.98 Paperback
$2.99 E-Book
172 Pages
ISBN 9781435712423

I was a poet long before I was a novelist or book reviewer.  My first self-published book was a pop up book of poetry which was literally assembled by hand in the 4th grade for a young author’s grade school event.  In college, I continued to write poetry and fell in love with the words of Frost and Dickinson.  Having only recently rekindled my affair with Miss Emily’s words, I was eager to read more verse and from a fresh new voice.  I’d had much success with the poetry I’ve reviewed here on the blog to date, so I knew Lulu was the perfect place to start.  I didn’t have to look far.  Poet Harry Gilleland, Jr. had quieried us some time ago with his third collection of poetry entitled Poetic Musings of an Old, Fat Man.

Based on the title alone, I was expecting a book of humorous limericks and rhyming political commentary, and while there are a few of those within the pages, Gilleland offers much more than that.  I was completely amazed at his vast but thorough range of subject matter.  From a poem about the candiru fish (which is known to lodge itself inside someone’s urethra) to another about a pack of vicious ankle biting chihuahuas, Gilleland treats his subject matter with the utmost seriousness.  The rhyming technique, verse, and pattern  which he uses to craft his so-called “storoems” (story poems) is so unique that you almost forget the humor just for the appreciation of his word use.

The book is divided into four styles of poetry: rhyming and storeoms, limericks (of which there are only two), acrostic poems, and free verse.  Gilleland has broken up the candid poems with other verses that are indeed of a more serious subject matter such has having to put a pet to sleep or a child dealing with the divorce of his parents.  But his crisp style remains tight and to the point throughout.  There are no wasted words, as one of my college professors used to say.

One of the true purposes of poetry for a reader is not just to discover what the poet was intending to convey, but to find how you relate to the poem.  Gilleland does a superb job of presenting an array of poems that are easy to understand and will certainly capture the attention, and the heart, of every reader.  Some of his well-known subjects came right from the headlines such as the tiger attacks in the California zoo or the effects Hurricane Katrina had on New Orleans.  Like conversations we share with old friends, these are events that each of us know in a different way but it’s still nice to take the time to listen to someone else’s view point.

I particularly liked the sections where Gilleland spends two or three poems on one specific theme.  There are two poems about his dogs near the beginning.  One is a cheerful poem while the other is very sad.  There’s another about a soldier having to leave for war, followed by another poem about the soldier in battle, then one about a soldier’s death and another about Memorial Day.  Each poem can stand completely on its own, but together they capture a nice vignette of words and thoughts.

My favorites were two poems about Hummingbirds.  In one, Gilleland ponders the thought of the birds leaving for winter and how he anticipates their return because it means warmer weather will be returning with them.  The next poem is about a daughter promising her dying mother she’ll continue to feed the hummingbirds after she’s gone.  The appearance of a white hummingbird becomes the vision of hope and healing after a tragic event.

At 63 years of age and an old Southerner, Gilleland also ponders how the world and technology has changed our social interaction with one another in magnificent poems entitled “I Remember When” and “The Pleasure of Old-Fashioned Letters.”  His good nature shines in fun verse about women obsessing over their hair, and in another play on words about a man wanting to rub cream on his wife’s hard and cracked “pair” in a poem called “Can’t Touch Them.”

Verse after verse, this poet is to be commended for his true talent with words.  I dog eared a dozen pages to possibly quote in this review, but the book must really be experienced as a whole.  But you don’t have to take my word for it.  Just read the number of reviews of praise Harry’s books have already received on Amazon.com before me.  Even if you don’t like poetry all that much or find it hard to understand, Harry Gilleland, Jr. writes with such heart that there is truly something here for everyone. I will leave you with one verse that still resonates with me long after I closed this book…

If humans were able to see their soul
while alive, it would become certain then
that all the virtues they would extol;
the world would be filled with better men.