Poetry Review

Life, And Everything in Between
by Stephen J. Dodds
ISBN-10: 1595409750

It takes a certain talent to create poetic verse that truly evokes an image or feeling. Stephen J. Dodds demonstrates his abundant ability in his book, "Life and Everything in Between."

This wonderful collection of works covers many topics and is aptly named. I found the perfect description for the book within one of the poems, "Random thoughts adorn the page, like a jig saw, connecting not in context, but adjoining perfectly, in concert." Though many of the poems do connect in context, it is the overall feeling of one man's thoughts on life that pulls the book together so nicely. Each poem is accompanied by a quote that compliments it and completes the feelings evoked by the verse. Each poem is demonstrative of an ability to pull imagery and feeling together and weave them into carefully chosen words. I especially enjoyed "the bath" as it brought to mind the relaxed sensation of my favorite evening event and the peace of mind one feels watching troubles go down the drain along with the bubbles.

Typically I will ponder if I've read the author's intentions correctly when reading poetry. Dodds takes the mystery from that question with the addition of an explanation at the end of the book, regarding what brought many of the poems to be. This adds to his outreach to his readers as we can truly look into the mind of the artist.

Stephen J. Dodds has found a place in my mind as a talented modern poet for every walk of life.