Arreboles

My book is called Arreboles by Boyer Rickel. I had never heard of Rickel but once I picked the book up I was hooked after reading the first two poems. Apparently the word arreboles is a Spanish word for the subtle colors clouds on the horizon take on when it is struck by rays of the setting sun. Listen to the meaning of the title again and close your eyes, because the picture and emotion you get when doing so is very similar to what the reader has the ability of experiencing while reading this book of poems. Rickel breaks his book up into three small sections of poems; however, each poem evokes some type of imagery and emotion. The reader has the unique opportunity to get taken by Rickel to another place, a place where he has lived and experienced and for a brief moment, wants to share with you. Boyer Rickel’s poems do not rhyme, although you will find that accidentally some lines do but it never becomes a pattern. He does not write poems that have a melody or swing to them, yet the reader will find oneself reading with ease. Each poem seems to have a purpose for being written, a little glimpse into someone’s life at that very moment. The poems are written about his Father, Mother, and Brother, along with a neighbor’s house, a friend, a lover, childhood and his backyard. You can tell that each poem has meaning and can be said to be quite personal; this draws the reader in. As you flip through the book one might notice that almost all the way through his book most of the lines in the poems are relatively short and he has normal breaks in poems, with stanzas of three to five lines. However, once you flip to the last short chapter, his style changes. Rickel a couple relatively short poems but breaks them up differently. He uses italics to write some of the poem or breaks them up by inserting an asterisk and then have a space below and starting it would look like, a whole new poem. On top of that, his style for those few poems becomes a little more abstract. One poem in particular catches your eyes because his lines progress almost diagonally down the page. Overall, his poems just flow and there are breaks in the sentences, it seems to add maybe a little tension, but it does not detract or distract from what Rickel continues to say in his poems. As you read, it is as if you are just reading a story, or he is just talking to you; no effort or forcefulness, just thoughts passing by that he mentions out loud; lucky you to hear. The poem ends with a wonderful poem, that truly touches the heart, one quite personal and beautifully written about life and death.