Zen Forest,
review by Avril Warren, B.C. Teacher-Librarian Review
A delightful collection of warm, human poems that many
high school students will appreciate, especially if directed by
a teacher.
Topics vary from a poem about a
stray white cat feeling the need for love; to Canada geese, shot
by some, painted by others and to the poet "familiar / on
some instinctual level"; to flowers, the symbols of love;
to Vancouver beaches (in "Towers Beach" she meets a
high school friend who stands naked before her and her children
and she, embarrassed "keeping my eyes / glued to his face...
trying to avoid / looking directly/ at his penis..."): to
a section entitled "Poems for the Holy Hours & Other
Bedside Covenants".
Several of the poems in this particular
section could be used as models for creative writing. Students
could write their own responses modeled on "Epiphany in the
Form of Old Woman with Walking Stick" ("Who is the old
woman? / A neighbourly busybody./ Who does she ask? /Anyone who
will listen".)
Zonailo has an eye for physical
detail and a sensual enjoyment of what she observes and experiences.
Many of the poems strike a very personal note, and the reader
feels that one is dealing with a very likeable person.
High schools needing more West
Coast lyric poetry should consider buying this volume of verse.
Copyright by Avril Warren: www.carolynzonailo.com,
2004.
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The
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