Fire: Poems
In this collection, Wesley McNair's fifth, he writes on a wide range of subjects, from
cigarette-smoking in old movies, to an executive's torments in hell, to sobering memories of
childhood and youth. The book culminates with the ambitious and moving title piece, a
narrative about a family's destruction, a son's attempt at reconciliation with his mother, and
their trip across the country to a family reunion and her revealing past.
"He has produced one of the most individual and original bodies of work by a poet
of his generation."
— The Ruminator Review
"Is there any poet around who can catch the singular qualities of American voices better than
Wesley McNair? If so, I haven't found him or her. In this, his fifth book of poetry — and for me his most
beautiful and moving — he reunites a dismal collection of people (what we call a family) and lets
everyone have his and her say. This unlikely project works only because of the power of his
emotional investment and the certainty of his craft. Although largely about New Englanders, this is
not regional writing. Only someone with a profound love and understanding of people and a superb
ear could show how we can say so much while taking so long to say nothing."
— Philip Levine in Ploughshares
"Poems personal yet universal by a master craftsman with a remarkable ear and memory."
— Maxine Kumin in Ploughshares
"[He has] one of the most inventive minds in American poetry."
— Hartford Courant
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