“Self-Portrait with Prodigal Father” does what good titles are meant to do—give an idea of the poem’s subject—but does it with a “hook,” something to grab attention and pique interest, to ensure that readers will go on to read the poem.

My father was wounded and wonderful, maybe in equal measure. To his credit, he took an early retirement and became a teacher. The poem is my ongoing questioning of who my father was and, on another level, how the whole meaning and influence of family changes once parents are no longer alive.

This poem is about thirst and how a life of thirst then quenched with a fistful of water can make you contend with all the women you could have been, the children you could have had, and the ever-changing body you are given.

Homage to a mother—is a common theme in poetry, but, refreshingly, is presented here without the Hallmark cliché or sentiment that so often mars such poems. Restraint is evident in every line

Among the many powerful poems written about AIDS, I find this one especially moving. I like that it is written in plainspoken diction, in free verse, qualities that support its agonized and heartfelt utterance.

. . . That’s an effective strategy, choosing a title that multiplies associations in the reader’s mind even before the poem is read. It makes me curious to see where Anderson will go from here: Will the poem involve any of these things, or instead, play off of my expectations and surprise me?