Title: Clandestine
Subtitle: A Classic Book of Poetry
Author: Amy Ritchie
Publisher: Xlibris
ISBN: 978-1-7960-5657-0
Genre: Poetry
Pages: 82
Reviewed by: Beth Adams

Read Book Review

Clandestine is a collection of poems by Amy Ritchie which will reveal a fresh view of many themes’ poetry lovers have come to enjoy. The subtitle of “A Classic Book of Poetry” is appropriate, as the subjects within her four-score of poems deals with paternal love for a deceased father, changing of the seasons, introspective self-analysis of feeling and emotions, and of course, thankfulness to God in His powerful omnipresent role in life, among others.

The collection pages with short poems, not set to rhyme nor foot, but in a style very candid and humble. Amy Ritchie does not overwhelm readers with complex phrases or many multi-syllable words showcasing her vocabulary, but rather writes for the enjoyment of her reading audience and exhibiting her sincere wishes to simply convey her observations. In a way I find the title Clandestine a bit odd, because there is nothing needing to be hidden or illicit in her thoughts; albeit other than keeping them within her personal privacy of her own mind. Nevertheless, it is intriguing with her dividing her poetry into three sections, “She Was Inconsolable; She Is Restored; and She Is Stardust”. Then further divided into clear titles and unambiguous prose.

It’s hard to pick out favorites, as they all are equally enjoyable, but one title “Bookstore” made me laugh out loud to myself when she talked about being so entrenched with a book off the shelf that she lost track of the world around her; ending the poem with, “Standing here for ages, I am lost in imaginary worlds / Until someone bumps in to me / As I stumble backward, I begin to look around. / I think it is time for me to pay. / The sky outside is dismal and gray; a storm appears to be on its way.” In her poem titled “Déjà Vu,” she cleverly compares the feelings of being there before to those of the changing seasons. “I am here / I am there. / I am elsewhere. / Just like the seasons, / I change, but I am still here.” That brought an image to my mind of a time-lapse movie of an outdoor field; with the summer sun rolling into autumn colors, tree leaves falling, winter freezing with snow and icicles, thawing into spring with blossoming leaves and flowers, to once again be the summer image I began with.

Clandestine is just what readers would like to get themselves so entrenched with the poetry of Amy Ritchie, that they themselves will lose track of time, and may become surprised in the change of weather going unnoticed around them, like she experienced in the bookstore.