The thread that dangles us between a dark and a darker dark Is luminous sure but smooth sided. Dont touch it here and dont touch it there. Dont touch it in fact anywhere Let it dangle and hold us hard let it flash and swing. from Scar Tissue Over the course of his workmore than twenty books in totalCharles Wright has built one of the truly distinctive bodies of poetry created in the second half of the twentieth century David Young Contemporary Poets. Oblivion Banjo a capacious new selection spanning his decadeslong career showcases the central themes of Wrights poetry language landscape and the idea of God. No matter the precise subject of each poem on display here is a vast and rich interior life a mind wrestling with the tenuous relationship between the ways we describe the world and its reality. The recipient of almost every honor in poetrythe Pulitzer Prize the National Book Award and the Bollingen Prize to name a fewand a former poet laureate of the United States Wright is an essential voice in American letters. Oblivion Banjo is the perfect distillation of his inimitable careerfor devout fans and newcomers alike. show more