Dan Rattelle on The Hanging God

The February 2019 issue of First Things is out, and within it comes these kinds words in a short review from the poet and critic Dan Rattelle:​

In James Matthew Wilson’s latest collection of poetry, every moment—whether sacred, profane, or somewhere in between—points back to God.

In “The Stations of the Cross” sequence, the narrator speaks in an everyday idiom as his mind wanders from news headlines, to his phone, to the story of Aeneas, to the cross. Even in moments of apparent worldliness, he concludes that “our Bodies strain for the weight you bore.” The sonnet sequence “Wiped Out” is like a photographic negative of “The Stations of the Cross.” Though the speaker recounts a relationship with a stripper, he is at least “half conscious of / the lust and lies from which I’d built my love.” These are hauntings of a prevenient grace, which, if he’s not careful, might just save him. 
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Though Wilson’s affinity for the sonnet is clear, the forms of Hanging God vary. Wilson comes into his voice in this collection, often opting for a plain, but not chatty, style. His references to the classical canon throughout serve not to show off, but to place myth within the context toward which it points—the true myth of our hanging (and risen) Lord. If you read one book of poetry this year, make it The Hanging God.
—Daniel Rattelle

In the literary world, any review is considered a good review, but I have been singularly blessed in my critics.  I encourage you to take Mr. Ratelle's advice, by clicking the book cover above.