Galley Talk: Frances Richey's The Warrior

I don't normally read much poetry, but Frances Richey's The Warrior: A Mother's Story of a Son at War [Viking, Apr.], a memoir in verse, was riveting. Richey conveys in a strong and honest way the feelings that ring so true to me and other mothers of soldiers. My son is a Green Beret and has deployed to Iraq three times. I understand the constant fear when he's in harm's way; wanting to know what he's doing but also the dread of knowing what he's doing; and trying to live my life constantly on the verge of tears. Her poem “Letters” made me remember when my son first went to Iraq and I'd go a month or more without hearing from him—all the while hearing news reports of soldiers being killed. The emotional relief of finally hearing from him still gives me a huge lump in my throat. Richey's honest and raw poems will make anyone understand the pride and the anguish that mothers of warriors feel.