Michael Simms
Reviews
Critical reviews of books by author Michael Simms.
Jose Padua reviews Nightjar for Coal Hill Review
"Nightjar gives you that sense of showing up at the back door, unannounced, unheralded, and exhibiting all the signs of having gone through a rough journey—a journey that might not be quite over yet. It’s a journey that got there not by consulting a hundred maps and reading every Yelp review or by leaving the GPS on and having some robotic voice tell you when to turn left, when to go straight ahead, and when to stop. It’s a journey that found its way by being true to its own unique vision."
Alexandra Umlas reviews American Ash for Cultural Daily
“Simms focuses attention on the material of the world and then surprises the reader with the power of what that focus, honed by a gift for words and experience, can do. Every poem gave me something to recognize, something to grapple with, some magic that made me see the world in a new way."
Gerry LaFemina reviews American Ash for Coal Hill Review
Kris Collins Reviews 10 Great Books by Pittsburgh Authors
“The poems gently insist we can be greater than our worst impulses… and therein lies the magic of the book. By confronting the darkness, Simms enacts a restoration of the light.”