Four Slender Books Of Poetry Poem by Bill Grace

Leo Rockas informed my undergraduate mind
“The Reader’s Digest” was the antithesis
Of what I had to learn to strive for in his class,
The noble professor was of course correct.
Mother raised me on one of Louis Untermeyer’s tomes
'War and Peace' – also present – was never cracked.
Perhaps in these ancient memories a cause
Why today four slender books of poetry are by my side
And poetry not prose is the attempt
To leave a parting gift.