This Great Unknowing: Last Poems by Denise Levertov, 68 pages
As the subtitle suggests, this collection was published posthumously, and in this case "posthumous" also means "unfinished". Perhaps that is why it is so unsatisfying. There is definite potential - the changing views of the mountain, in particular, suggest a theme that might have developed into something remarkable - but the potential remains potential unrealized.
Among the most promising elements was actually chosen by the editors - the title. In context, This Great Unknowing refers to the unconscious character of blessedness, in which beatitude is experienced as natural and naturally to be shared. In contrast, the book itself is marred by several self-conscious attempts to be relevant. This is one manifestation of what seems to be a deeper problem - Levertov's inability to make peace with history, and to find in the past some of the same spontaneous joy of recognition she finds in the face of a flower.
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