Ka-Ching!

Duhamel keeps alive the bright-eyed, naughty little girl, innocently letting shocking revelations slip out in flustered distraction, without her seeming to notice-but don't be fooled, this is a woman of power. She is funny and charming and unique. Her poems shine, a beacon in a dark time, fulfilling poetry's duty not only of refreshing the language but, with their humanity and clear thinking, lighting up the path for a country in need of honesty and cheer.

I don't know where we'd be without Denise Duhamel's funny, touching, and inventive poems. In book after book, she's raised her own bar, and in this new one reaches a zenith of postmodern tricksterism, while at the same time tackling feminist and political issues, as well as personal tragedy. Ka-Ching! is a treasure trove of a book.

With their playful ingenuity, the poems in Ka-Ching lull you into just plain enjoying them, but when you're finished you realize what sharp observations of contemporary America they contain. This is an extraordinarily original book, often making old forms look new, and filled with both acidic criticism and generous wisdom.

"Ka-Ching is an unforgettable collection of poems. Carefully crafted to look and feel like a board game with section titles such as 'play money' and 'small tip,' the book reads and feels like a game of chance in which tragic losses are but part of the play. Thought-provoking, disturbing, deeply moving, masterfully composed—Ka-Ching clearly demonstrates why Denise Duhamel is one of the finest poets of our time."

Reliably sharp and entertaining. Duhamel's knack for blending tones—especially the personal and sociological, the ludicrous and the horrifying, the silly and the pathetic—gives poem after poem its distinctive and unforgettable character.

Duhamel's blunt, occasionally playful voice is versatile . . . Although long lines and expository prose blocks dominate this collection, the poet's lyricism emerges in moments when she employs traditional form in surprising ways. Duhamel . . . has written some of the first poetry to deeply register the current economic crisis.

This is the wildest, most honest book of poetry written in a long time. The various forms Duhamel uses prove that her imagination is keen and totally unpredictable. Dominated by prose poems, the book ranges across every contemporary worry, obsession, and conflict possible. The result is a voice that brings solutions to the challenges of everyday life while investigating how language rebuilds hope in a troubled and chaotic time.

Duhamel is a wily technician, a touching humanist, a poet deserving stardom.

The reader gets his or her money's worth . . . The poems, which are by degrees humorous, inventive and heartbreaking, are far more thought-provoking and entertaining than reading the latest financial headlines.