The Darkness of Snow

Frank Ormsby's poetry is deep but never sententious, exhibits great technique but never flaunts it, is of the moment but never trendy. In his most recent volume, The Darkness of Snow, we see memories of his youth in Fermanagh as well as poems of adult years in Belfast, reflecting on the aftermath of the Troubles and the city's restoration while commemorating a life lived in poetry. This collection also includes a sequence that meditates on the art of Irish painters, followed by a series of Parkinson's Poems. Finally, we encounter poems on the atrocities of a village called "The Willow Forest," told by one of the interpreters who understands the difficulties of bearing witness. As the title suggests, this volume is both luminous and dark.