Plundered Hearts: New and Selected Poems

At last, a definitive selection of the elegant work by a poet at the forefront of American poetry for more than three decades.<br> <br>With his first several books, J. D. McClatchy established himself as a poet of urbanity, intellect, and prismatic emotion, in the tradition of James Merrill, W. H. Auden, and Elizabeth Bishop--one who balances an exploration of the underworld of desire with a mastery of poetic form, and whose artistry reveals the riches and ruins of our &quot;plundered hearts.&quot; Now, opening with exquisite new poems--including the stunning &quot;My Hand Collection,&quot; a catalogue of art objects that steals up on the complexity of human touch, and a witty and profound poem entitled &quot;My Robotic Prostatectomy&quot;--this selection is a glorious full tour of McClatchy's career. It includes excerpts from the powerful book-length sequence <i>Ten Commandments</i> (1998) and his more recent works <i>Hazmat</i> (2002) and <i>Mercury Dressing</i> (2009) - books that explored the body's melodrama, as well as the heart's treacheries, grievances, and boundless capacities. All of his poems present a sumptuous weave of impassioned thought and clear-sighted feeling. He has been rightly hailed as a poet of &quot;ferocious alertness,&quot; one who elicits (says <i>The New</i> <i>Leader</i>) &quot;the kind of wonder and joy we experience when the curtain comes down on a dazzling performance.&quot;<br><br><br><i>From the Hardcover edition.</i>