Playing the Changes

Now back in print, this collection of Thulani Davis’s poetry is a remarkable, galvanic experience reminiscent of the visionary beauty and fiery resolution of Sonia Sanchez or Ntozake Shange. These are poems of visceral impact, whether they speak of the shattering of a love, the violence of history or modern life, or the whole body of God, weighing down on one nail. There are poems of passionate sensuality and stunning loss. This is the work, Ishmael Reed wrote, of a formidable poet … inimitable … a serious artist who deserves serious readers.