CHRONOLOGY OF DESIRE

Young explores his biography and Buddhist philosophy in this debut poetry collection.

The author, a professor of linguistics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, was born in Hertfordshire in 1948 and adopted by a couple from Acton, West London. Over “sixty-odd years,” he’s lived in Italy, Hong Kong, and China, eventually settling with his Chinese wife in the United States in 1983. As per the title, the collection follows these journeys chronologically, breaking them down into sections prefaced with slightly clipped biographical context. Introducing the poems written during his Oxford years, Young tells readers that he was the first in his family to attend university and explains that, despite his degree, “the study of [philosophy, politics, and economics] occupied very little of [his] time or interest at Oxford.” By contrast, the poems that follow often explore “sensual pleasure,” the desires guiding Young through the world that the author, guided by the Buddhist belief that “attachment causes suffering,” strives to eliminate. Written largely in free verse with short, truncated lines, Young’s poems often incorporate natural imagery and philosophical proclamations as he writes of “autumn’s sad hue… rushing springtime” (“Oh, for a River”) or a conversation between a waterfall and the rain (“Raining in the Mountain”). The collection’s greatest joy comes from watching the author’s voice mature. Leaving behind the overwrought, verbose verse of his younger years (“I have heard Truth dwells here. // But where can I find it? / What are its manifestations?”), the older Young produces some charming work that shines in its attention to detail. The failings of his motorbike (“They filled her up with 4-star / but she still ran ill”) or a feast eaten in Wuhan are brought to vivid life in straightforward, carefully weighted, contemplative language. Haynes’ accompanying sketchy pencil illustrations mostly depict literal images from the poems—some add an affecting melancholy feel, while others, like a Tardis included below a poem that briefly mentions “Time Lord[s],” distract without adding much context.

An occasionally clunky collection that ripens nicely as it goes along.