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Title: Just went to a reading of her poetry
Review: First, Fennelly is NOT a Southerner. Second, and maybe more importantly, her work is typical of the MFA poetry mill verse which plagues the current literary landscape. Her themes are risky, yes, if she was writing about them forty years ago when introducing the idea of women's bodies and being frank about sexuality and reproduction -- in the way she does it -- had not become hackneyed. Certainly there is much serious work to be done in exploring these issues, yet Fennelly simply cannot rise beyond cliche. In fact, much of her work might easily be considered reactionary to the important causes of women. This collection is shockingly absent of thoughtful responses to serious contemporary concerns, and I was disappointed.
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