Kafka's Shadow

Poetry. I have been drawn to Judith Skillman's work for three decades, ever since her first book, Worship of the Visible Spectrum. In her latest volume, she inhabits the mind of Franz Kafka, as well as some of those who loomed large in his life: family members, would-be sweethearts, his editors. We thus see the world in the outré, off-kilter way that Kafka seems to have--as if the lenses of his eyes worked differently than most people's, letting in a light that few can focus. In KAFKA'S SHADOW, he sees edges that others don't, edges that cut him off from taking part in 'normal' life--pleasing his father, marrying, performing work that others consider productive. Skillman's use of internal rhyme in many of these poems exemplifies how Kafka's world, while being initially recognizable as our own, resonates on another frequency, bringing music sharp and unfamiliar to our ears. This book gives us a deeper knowledge of Kafka as a person and artist, of his times and difficulties in finding his place. Though he loved peonies, we see the thistles that grew around him.--Michael Spence, author of Umbilical, winner of The New Criterion Poetry Prize

Reading Skillman's poems, I felt more acutely my own desire to be fully alive, the pressing realities of beauty and loss.--John Amen, editor of The Pedestal Magazine

...readers will encounter the intelligence and honesty of the real thing.--Brendan Galvin

Skillman's ability to accommodate multiple meanings in even the most seemingly straightforward of sentences is like being pushed by a doppelganger who insists we jump beyond obvious interpretations.--Christianne Balk, author of The Holding Hours, UW Poetry Series An enviable collection of free verse on one of the most enduring writers of the 20th century, Franz Kafka, gives a look into the life of this writer as well as his family and the culture of his times. A figure most of us know only by reputation takes on a breathing, contemporary aspect based on extensive research by a widely respected award winning American poet. The craftsmanship of the collection is to be savored. --Carol Smallwood