Fatherhood Is a Verb

In his long-awaited second book of poems, Quintin Prout re-invents, in the spirit of our truest poets, the common language of English speakers to meet his needs in expressing his experience. In fact, he goes as far as to re-assign words their parts of speech, as his experience requires. In his hands, the noun fatherhood becomes a verb. As is the case with so much in this world that is "assigned" (race, sex, and so on), the language on the tip of our tongue has to tell the truth that lies in the heart; thus fatherhood is not a thing but a verb, active and even transformative. Such a "reassignment" affirms our freedom to be ourselves, as poetry at its best always does, within the limits of our common language. As father and daughter interact in poem after poem, this witty, heartfelt, instructive book shows us fatherhood in action, and the lucky reader who happens on it will be grateful for its exemplary, original voice.