Nearer the Heart. New book of poems take us back to Armenian-American
child-hood

The Armenian Mirror Spectator
by Helene Pilibosian
5 August 2006

This new book of poems by a very prolific writer, a child of Armenian
immigrants who came to America after the Genocide, takes us back to an
Armenian-American child-hood spent in Racine and in Fresno. These
poems are made of moments, impressions out of the past and some doubts
about identity.

The name of the first section, `These are a few of my favorite
things,’ is about the neighbor Ruby or the girlfriend, Barbara Smith,
Douglas Park, the pond, and his mother.

There are three absorbing poems about William Saroyan and two of his
relatives, for the author knew the family and considered the great
writer his mentor. That fame, being so prized, brings much attention
even after death and brings the readers snatches of fascination. Later
on in the book there is another poem called `Three’ about a visit to
Bill Saroyan’s home. The author’s look at the Armenian past as
history including the sight of some Turks doesn’t communicate a heavy
sense of tragedy.

In the section titled `Beginnings’ there is a charming poem about
bridges that take us `across our town and the interstices of the
heart.’ Indeed, the bridges across hearts are precious and sometimes
difficult-. There is a lovely reminiscence about asking at
Bachaklian’s for magart (the starter for yogurt) and by mistake asking
for sarma (stuffed grape leaves). And add more scenes about fishing, the
fish fry, the yellow bricks of the abandoned factory, trains, the city,
the town, and Sammy Bar ice cream and you can relive this life through
nostalgia.

A poem tided `Thompsondale’ begins, `We will never leave the
picnic at Thompsondale, our mothers very beautiful in their summer
dresses, our fathers with straw hats and colored suspenders.’ The
details turn the clock back and keep it there. There is also a nice poem
about e. e. cummings, the famous American poet which the author wrote
out of admiration for his very original work.

In `Places’ the author writes a poem about being in Yugoslavia,
asking `had the mysterious East always been in our blood and bone?’
This writing about a foreign location is unusual in Kherdian’s work,
but it is telling. Writing about places and his reaction to them seems
to be his forte, though the places are usually in the United States,
places he inhabited or grew up in.

The style of these poems is direct and narrative in telling the reader
about experiences that have shaped his mind as he was growing up and
thus his future. Readers will find his down-to-earth approach
accessible.

This is a book that will appeal to readers of any age and even those who
don’t usually read poetry.

_________________

Nearer the Heart by David Kherdian was published by Taderon Press
(London and Reading, 2006, 94 pages) in association with the Gomidas
Institute. It is distributed worldwide by Garod Books Ltd.
(info@garodbooks.com).