Night of Warehouses by Stephen Oliver (HeadWorx, 192 pgs., $26.95, NZ, $21.95, AU – No U.S. price given)

Admittedly, I was not very familiar with Stephen Oliver's work prior to reading this volume. I've seen his name around the Internet and I have a vague recollection that he's submitted work to me on at least one occasion. Still, prior to receiving this book in my mailbox, I couldn't honestly name one of his poems. I take Stephen Oliver (although, I do not know him) to be a well-read, intelligent individual with more than a journeyman's knowledge of poetic technique. I surmise this from his many cultural references and allusions as well as the fact that he is not a wholly inept writer. However, this book only shows us glimpses of the poet he could be with little pay-off for the reader.

The first third of the book, which begins with poems from a collection titled & Interviews, is barely intelligible owing much to poets of the San Francisco Renaissance — particularly Whalen and Snyder albeit without the natural grace of either poet. Oliver's seemingly arbitrary use of space and punctuation is a particularly annoying detractor from whatever gifts his imagery might possess.

The collection picks up some smarts in the third section, Guardians, Not Angels. The writing is tighter and the energy of the language isn't forced. The section's title poem and "Queen Street Riot" are of particular note. The latter sections, beginning with "Islands in the Wilderness,"pleased me somewhat less. His newer poems are competent and workmanlike, but unremarkable. While I appreciated certain lines and phrases (Pitiless is a word disowned . . .", etc.), I began to suspect that this book was not so much representative of a natural progression in the poet's journey as it is a series of false starts and dead-ends.

This collection ultimately struck me as the poetic equivalent of Shepherd's Pie. If you happen to like Shepherd's Pie, you might well find something to admire about Oliver's book. If not, well . . . good luck.

— Reviewed by JCE