A Thousand Mornings

by Mary Oliver

Genres: Poetry
Pages: 82
Rating:

Synopsis:

Whether studying the leaves of a tree or mourning her treasured dog Percy, Mary Oliver is beautifully open to the teachings contained within the smallest of moments. In A Thousand Mornings she explores, with startling clarity, humour and kindness, the mysteries of our daily experience.

I think A Thousand Mornings is my least favourite of Mary Oliver’s collections that I’ve read so far. It retains that strong sense of joy and wonder in the world that I enjoy about her work, so there’s that, but I didn’t connect with the individual poems as strongly as I’d hoped to.

I think… partly it felt too short? With a few more poems, a bit more chance to get my teeth into it, maybe I’d have gelled with it better? But it’s hard to say; you can only go on what’s there, and it didn’t sing to me the way I’d hoped.

I do love her work so much in general, though. The sense of love and joy in the whole world is palpable, and always enjoyable; she had such a gift for joy.

Rating: 2/5 (“it was okay”)