First, right away: Jane Zenger's debut poetry collection, Night Bloomer, is nothing short of stunning and all encompassing, and I suggest reading it all in one sitting like I did. And if you can do so, be prepared to be blown away. For these are not the poems of a beginning poet, but instead the beautifully written reminiscences of a woman who has led a very full life indeed, from the extended death of a loved one to near-death experiences herself. Then there's the empathy that shines throughout--during her many travels all over the globe, as well as in her deep and abiding love of Cedar Creek, the small South Carolina patch of land on which she lives, and all its creatures. Yet never does she overdramatize an existence that by any standards has been dramatic, and instead, over and over, places herself--sometimes humorously--within the center of lived experience. As the great poet, W. B. Yeats said, the only two things worth writing about are sex and the dead, and in these poems, Jane Zenger has done both well.
