Between My Eye and the Light

Hole torn in the language, / How shall we speak?"" The very first lines of the first poem in Paul Breslin's artful second collection of poetry, Between My Eye and the Light, demand an answer, of both poet and reader, to the seemingly unspeakable tragedies of modern life. The rest of the collection forms a beautifully insistent exercise in the power of language to engage experiences both mundane and profound. Breslin queries far-flung corners of experience for answers, engaging childhood, his longtime home of Chicago, small moments of life, and profound encounters with artists such Rainer Marie Rilke and Derek Walcott. The poems even query the opening question. While pat answers elude us, poetry is a bulwark against cliche and cynicism, strengthening those who have the courage to question and explore the corners of experience.