Some might not be familiar with the way our e-reviews work. Every week we get several copies of various collections of poetry sent to us, hoping to be reviewed, but we’re a small staff, and don’t have time to write reviews ourselves. Moreover, subjectivity of taste is part of our editorial philosophy — our opinions are no more valid than anyone else’s. So rather than let these review copies gather dust, we offer them up to you, our readers. Every book we receive is listed here. As you can see, it’s a long list. If you’re interested in any of the books, and would like to write a review, just email me (timgreen@rattle.com), and I’ll send it to you. Any thoughtful, well-formed opinions will be published online.

Not only are reviews very important for poetry books, as they try to market themselves without any kind of marketing budget, but writing them is a great exercise for poets — being able to look objectively at the structure of a book, trying to describe clearly what you like and what you don’t like about a series of poems, can only be a positive influence on your own work. Everyone wins: reviews are great for books trying to find an audience, they’re great for readers looking for new poets, they’re great for writers trying to hone their craft, and they’re great for Rattle, drawing traffic to the website.

So participate already!

I’ve just added a couple dozen books to the list. These are just what we’ve gotten this month:

• Julie Sheehan - Orient Point
• Spring Ulmber - Benjamin’s Spectacles
• Best American Poetry 2007
• Stephen Cramer - Tongue & Groove
• Catherine Jagee - Casting Off *
• Judi K. Beach - How Far Light Must Travel
• Timothy B. Anderson - Frame of Mind
• Robert Bohm - Uz Um War Moan Ode *
• Marine Robert Warden - Cantacle III
• Maxine Kumin - Still to Mow
• Jody Aliesan - True North
• Seeing Los Angeles: a different look at a different city
• Douglas Goetsch - Your Whole Life *
• Ted Kooser - The Poetry Home Repair Manual
• R.T. Smith - Outlaw Style
• Greg Rappleye - Figured Dark
• Elizabeth Knies - Going and Coming Back *
• Robert Dunn - Je ne regrette rien *
• Li Bai and Du Fu, tr. by Keith Holyoak - Facing the Moon
• Marie Howe - The Kingdom of Ordinary Time #
• Chris Green - The Sky Over Walgreens
• G.C. Waldrep - Disclamor
• Andrew Kozma - City of Regret

These books are lonely. They need you. They want you to judge them. And they’re free — all they cost is your time and attention.