Thank you NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the review copy of “In the Blood” by Carl Phillips.

I am not familiar with Carl Phillips’ work, which is an embarrassing admission to have to make as he is a Pulitzer Prize winner and the recipient of several other literary awards. “In the Blood” was first released in 1992; this edition includes an afterword by Phillips himself, which I found to be equally as fascinating as the poems. This was his debut collection, and it clearly shows his gift for poetry even early in his career. He writes with raw honesty; there is an earnestness to his voice as he opens himself to his readers. He writes as though the page gives his voice the freedom to soar. This is what I wish my poetry to become.