THRIVE UPON THE ROCK

Rosten's first book of poetry in ten years divides about equally between city verse and nature poetry. It is marked by a new and deeper melancholy concern with death, contrasting with his usual directness, flat rhythms and middlebrow diction. Contrarily, his best work in this new volume is seldom his autobiographical poems but rather his imitations of the strict measures of famous old poems. The best ones are an elegy to Marilyn, based in part upon ""Who Killed Cock Robin? and an A-bomb comedy parodying Marlowe's ""Come live with me and be my love."" There are several pop poems, including an elegy to Bogey. More good work appears in his lyrics ""On Tidying Up"" and ""Rodin: Love and Psyche"" which come close to singing and are a-typical of his approach. There are verses, about Venice and Paris; introspective poems about his parents and late wife; and sombre set-pieces for Whitman, Melville, Crane and--best because least inflated--for Maxwell Bodenheim...All told, there is less inspiration than honesty in this work, though the more imaginative poems should be saved.