This series of poems by our very own Poetry Editor in Chicago embodies the title perfectly as it explores the paradox of form and function in life and language. Quiet without being subdued, intelligent without being obtuse, and deeply affecting without resorting to melodrama, this book carries itself into the reader with arresting honesty and simplicity that is at once harsh and elegant. Adams’ full-length collection, Intervening Absence, is forthcoming from Ahsahta Press in 2009.