It would be challenging to find a poetry collection encompassing a wider range of subjects than Salter’s latest ... Salter enfolds the varied objects of her attention within the lapidary midcentury formalism of polished rhymes and traditional prosody ... But Salter’s wit often lightens the mood ... Salter’s 'fine high language of address and dress' may not appeal to everyone, but those who lament the current dearth of old-school verse will find much to admire here.
Salter pairs her exceptional formal deftness with arch insouciance, bringing both rigor and wit to subtly provocative poems that revel in human ingenuity and parse fear, loss, and sorrow ... Wryly illuminating suite of sonnets about life on the screen ... Salter, who can feel Audenesque, is a supremely incisive ekphrastic poet ... These are poems of piquant insight and artistry.
Timely and delightful ... Salter conjures a rich cast of characters and literary allusions, her fine ear on display at every turn ... Her interest in the ekphrastic form is apparent, as in the poignant 'St. Sebastian Interceding for the Plague-Stricken,' which presents haunting echoes of the present day. However, this interest transcends mere artistic translation from one medium to another, and her poems consistently explore what can only be intimated or suggested ... Salter’s direct and unfailingly imaginative works make this collection a thorough pleasure.
