Poetry Review

From the Well
By Colleen Avelli
ISBN# 1-4241-8040-6
Review by Heather Froeschl

With poetic voice, sentiments are released and shared, moments of life relived and relayed, and tidbits of time examined and explored. In Colleen Avelli’s poetry collection, “From the Well,” readers are gifted with caches of imagery, treasures of emotion, and quite simply, a delightful, touching tome.

The first section of the collection is perfectly pagan, dealing with nature and moments of legend and lore. With dragons and princesses in towers, knights and minstrels abound, while ancient stones and emotions endure, the poetry trickles as a stream through primeval forest. Magic is woven through settings of old, leaving the reader wishing for simpler moments and for the feel of wildly rough tree bark under the tips of fingers. My favorite in this section is a poem titled; “Celtic Maiden” in which a damsel is so bravely “saved” by a knight who comes to be told that his sword is not needed, for the maiden can clearly take care of herself. Let the fairy games abound! Another portion of the book examines the touchstones of life. From a moment blessed by a butterfly to the pitfalls and trappings of the mind, subjects here vary greatly but are raw emotion and offer a bare naked glimpse at the author’s soul. A son’s haircut, a bit of writing done and disposed of, human connections embraced and ignored, all are topics of poetic verse. In the last section, looking at love and loss, the mirror is held up to show days of unbridled joy and times deep within the well of despair. My favorite in this section is unbearably heart-touching. “Goodnight Daddy” is an embracement of loss and saying goodbye in life’s hardest moment. Relating to this endeavor is something most readers will do, acknowledging what Colleen Avelli is openly sharing is something I do here in reaction. Poets open their souls to the reader of their words; Avelli does so seemingly without hesitation.

An endearing collection of poetry, “From the Well” has something for everyone. Reaching out to the free spirit in all of us, stroking the heart strings, Avelli shares her gift through rhythmic lines of verse. The accompanying illustrations add to the magical feel of the book, lending an ancient quality perfectly fitted to the text. In pure delight, I highly recommend “From the Well.”