Certain Solitudes

About

Offered in homage to American poet Donald Justice, this book contains memoirs, reviews, and assessments of Justice’s work from friends, critics, and poets. The retrospections and essays focus attention on Justice’s singular talents, his poems, and the teaching skills that have made him one of the most influential poets of the last fifty years.

While not the subject of exhaustive academic criticism, Justice has nonetheless had the close attention of some astute reviewers. Certain Solitudes: On the Poetry of Donald Justice includes an extensive selection of contemporary reviews that chronicle his career. Reviews include Howard Nemerov, Irvin Ehrenpreis, and Derek Mahon.

In twelve memoirs, poets such as W.D. Snodgrass, Mark Strand, Philip Booth, and Jorie Graham make outstanding contributions toward Justice’s literary biography. They cover his years in graduate school, his time at Syracuse and Iowa, and his years in Florida. Seven essays, from writers like Robert Mezey, Bruce Bawer, and Richard Howard analyze Justice’s mastery of languages, his influences, and his themes.

Through these reminiscences, reviews, memoirs, and critical studies, the editors have afforded readers a broad and balanced picture of this Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, a writer many consider to be a central conscience of the late twentieth century.

Editors

Dana Gioia is a critic and poet. He is the author of two collections of poetry, Daily Horoscope (1986) and The Gods of Winter (1991), as well as the critical collection, Can Poetry Matter? (1992). He lives in northern California.

William Logan is professor of English at the University of Florida. Recipient of awards including the Peter I. B. Lavan Younger Poets Award from the Academy of American Poets and the Citation for Excellence in Reviewing from the National Book Critics Circle, Logan is also the author of three books of poetry and one book of poetry and one book of critical essays.