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These beautifully made poems continue Logue's lyrical examinations begun with Discriminating Evidence, Settling, and Meticulous Attachment -- her three previous books of poetry. In Discriminating Evidence we saw the poet letting go of the past. In Settling we witnessed the poet embracing the future without fear. In Meticulous Attachment we shared the poet's transcendent desire to live in the moment. But during the last days of 2002, Logue admits she felt afraid. The world seemed unsettled, uncertain, and full of conflict. As the new year began, she resolved to write a poem a day as a way to regain her lost sense of control. Logue explains in her preface to Hand Work: 'I believe that writing poems is doing good work that can change the nature of our world.' Since 2003, she has carefully culled the poems she believes are 'the better ones' -- her 'good work' -- and offers them now as her fourth collection.
In Heart Wood poet Mary Logue gives the reader a close examination of the wonderful ordinariness of life in clear and simple language. She asks one to "stand on the earth" and listen, to witness the miracle of a lamb being born, and shows the magic of floating on water. In these poems, she encourages us to live in the heart of this world, realistically to "know how bad it can be and how good." Having homes on both sides of the Mississippi river in Minnesota and Wisconsin, Logue is deeply aware of the natural environment. The landscape of this collection is filled with trees, snow, rivers, flowers, and "wars and weddings." We are presented with the many ways people move through the world as we watch people quilt, stare at a lunar eclipse, or doze with a small dog on their lap. With a warm fire burning while drinking verbena tea the books ends, giving us a deep awareness of all the has happened, at the close of another day. She reminds us it is our duty to "wring every drop of joy" out of this life we have been given, whatever form it takes.