cover image Love Had a Compass: Journals and Poetry

Love Had a Compass: Journals and Poetry

Robert Lax. Grove Press, $22 (254pp) ISBN 978-0-8021-1587-4

Lax is a somewhat legendary poet known primarily for two reasons: he traveled in a circle in the 1930s that included Thomas Merton, John Berryman, Robert Giroux and Ad Reinhardt; and he has lived and written on the Greek island of Patmos since the early 1960s. This combination of famous friendships and personal obscurity has added heat to his reputation but not much light--his poetry has been obscured by his myth. This volume, however, will likely introduce Lax's considerable poetic power to a wider audience. Uebbing's introduction captures the essence of Lax's work: ""A simple response to a simple moment""; ""much of his work is almost devoid of imagery."" Lax's early poems are a mix of emotionality (""for we must seek/ by going down,/ down into the city/ for our song"") and formal experimentation (""black/ black/ white/ white/ black/ black/ white/ white""). But his finest work can be seen in the previously unpublished sequence of poems, Port City: The Marseille Diaries. Drawing on the people and places he encountered during an extended, down-and-out time in the city during the 1950s, in ""Port City"" Lax finally declares his mission: ""I will sing you/ of the moments/ sing you/ of those/ possibly/ meaningless moments."" (June)