The first book of the man who "has won more prize money than any other young poet in America today" might be expected to be pleasant reading. That it does more is credit both to Mr. Brinnin and to contemporary criticism, for "The Garden Is Political" has much to contribute to the future of American verse. Brinnin, currently studying at Harvard for his M.A., has published frequently in the Advocate, and the reprinting of some of these poems lends a pleasant air of familiarity to this not always easy volume.

Ranging in subject from the philosophically cosmic to the personal love-affair, Brinnin remains contemporary in context and imagery. The poet's "wasteland" is constantly evident in the volume, but this poet also finds room for hope and for reaffirmation of individual dignity. Poems like "Every Earthly Creature" and "O Troubled Heart" combine an honest appraisal of the shortcomings of our age with an artist's answer to contemporary despair, and thus add philosophic depth to the poignant cry for lost riches in lyrics like "Prague." If, ultimately, it is in the more personal lyrics, such as "Dissertation on Whose Eyes" and "New York's Eve" that the poet seems to show the depest insight and finest command of his medium, his effort on contemporary affairs have a unique merit of their own.

Technically in the tradition of Hart Crane and Whitman, these poems rely almost entirely upon the forceful phrase for their effect. Brinnin displays an unparalled gift for shaping the everyday word into a biting, meaningful symbol, and the use of sharp contrast adds force to this verse. If his meter seems colorless, it must be remembered that many of these poems were designed for the use of creative dance groups and thus gain force if read aloud. One may hope that in the future Mr. Brinnin's metrical talent will develop alongside his gift for the phrase, and that the phrases themselves may be tempered to yield a more than technical unity; meanwhile "The Garden Is Political" may stand on its own feet.