What Exactly Is Poetry?

One poet's definition, and a few examples

I was recently on a panel of poets leading a discussion about poetry as a kickoff to National Poetry Month. As a fun way to jump start the discussion, we each prepared a definition of poetry to reveal to each other that evening. It was no surprise that each of us emphasized different things, because there are probably as many different ways to describe poetry as there are poets in the world. I don’t have time to unpack all the definitions here (you can get access to the recording by becoming a member of The Habit!) but I will share my attempt:

Poetry is the playful use of language to succinctly embody a thought, a feeling, or an experience.

By way of example, and in further celebration of National Poetry Month, I thought I’d share a few poems from our Bandersnatch Books poetry collections to demonstrate the ways poetry can do each of these things.

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For a poem that playfully uses language to succinctly embody a thought, I selected the title poem from Kelly Belmonte’s new collection, The Mother of All Words. Kelly had heard the phrase “the mother of all bombs” and was struck by how incongruous the idea was, so she teased out the idea of what “the mother of all words” might be:

The Mother of All Words
Kelly D. Belmonte

That time the second largest word—Hate—slammed
clumsy sideways into that forgotten box of once-
essentials left for dust in the corner
next to the attic stairs.
Physics and nature and chance being what they are,
end over tip goes the box, and what should
roll bounce flop out
but the Mother of all words: Love.

“Remember me?” But more statement than question,
no rancor, no accusation, but acceptance
that what is born out of Love does not always take
the path of least resistance and with resistance
comes friction, pain, sometimes hostility,
maybe even Hate. But never indifference.

And when there is still enough heat and light
to generate Hate, there’s still hope
of melting hearts and changing minds,
turning and returning to Love.

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For a poem that playfully uses language to succinctly embody a feeling, I chose one from my own collection Beyond Chittering Cottage: Poems of Place that conveys a sense of frustration/futility. This is one that my husband has been appreciating of late as he tackles a ceiling repair job on a rental house:

Mudding Drywall
Rachel S. Donahue

Mudding drywall is the worst.
There’s a reason we pay someone else to do it.

My unskilled hands are clumsy with the blade.
I’m covered in the dust of my previous attempts.

Where I need more mud, I skim too much
and imperfections show through.

Where a thin coat would do,
I create bigger problems
as I try to smooth out the smaller ones.

The areas that need to be built up and out
grow laboriously slow under my hand.

I can never get mud in just the right places.

Just when I think I’ve got it,
I step back and see
a monstrosity.

The pursuit of this smooth white wall is vexing.

What would I be willing to pay
to have the job finished?

Right now,
everything.
I finally see my need.

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For a poem that playfully and succinctly embodies an experience, I thought I’d share a favorite from Jen Rose Yokel’s collection, Beneath the Flood. It recounts something that happened to her in a thrift store one day, in language that both captures the experience and reveals a deeper meaning behind it:

The Image of God
Jen Rose Yokel

“Can you believe someone
got rid of this?” She was
pushing the cart through

Savers when she found Jesus
cast in plaster, paint faded
with decades, hidden among

the cookware and knick-knacks,
cracked plates and novelty pints,
gazing with serene painted eyes.

“Maybe somebody died,” her
companion reasons. Maybe
he was found in the cellar

of some ancient vovó, who’d
long gone to meet the real
thing, leaving his image

on Earth. Maybe the family
couldn’t abide his stare, the
questions, the mystery, the end

of all things trapped in his
unfathomable eyes. Maybe
to drop him here was a mercy.

She pushes behind me in the
checkout line, Jesus in her cart.
I take my bagged-up 8-dollar jeans

and hurry out. Her irritation
pierces me, but not as much
as those eyes on my back.

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If you’re not usually a poetry lover but are intrigued by these poems, check out the collections in our store. These three books are all pocket-sized for travel, perfect for keeping on hand to bring beauty and thoughtfulness to your moments of waiting. (They also make great gifts!)

For more snippets of poetry throughout the month, follow us on Instagram!

Help Us Support the 21st Century Packhorse Librarians!

During the Great Depression, a group of women saddled up their horses and delivered books through the Appalachian Mountains. In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Kirsten Turner is leading a group bringing books back to Appalachia, 21st-Century Style. You can learn more about the project in this article!

We connected with Kirsten earlier this year through the Story Warren community and packed up a box of books for them to use at some of their early spring events. We’d like to do it again, but we need your help! Here’s how:

1. Order any books from our website using code PACKHORSE for 40% off.

2. If you’d like to help us with shipping costs, that’s all you need to do. If you can’t help with shipping, you can also add code PACKSHIP for free shipping.

3. We’ll package up all the books you order and ship them to the Packhorse Librarians in batches or take them when we volunteer at an event.

4. You can fill in our address for the shipping address: P.O. Box 2473, Indian Trail, NC 28079

*Any orders using these codes will be sent to the Packhorse Librarians for Western North Carolina.

April 15, 2025 - Release of poetry collection by Kelly Belmonte, Mother of All Words
June 2025 - Release of mystery novel for older readers by Katherine Ladny Mitchell, Not to Be
July 18–20, 2025 - Bandersnatch at the Realm Makers Expo in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Learn more
Fall 2025 - Release of middle grade fantasy novel by Glenn McCarty, The Song of the Stone Tiger
Fall 2025 - Release of illustrated children’s poetry anthology, I’ve Got a Bad Case of Poetry - Preorder on the Kickstarter Platform
November 2025 - Release of lower middle-grade novel by Mary Barrows, Joe the Fourth and the King’s Crown

We’ve been sharing poetry on our Instagram lately in honor of National Poetry Month. Here’s another look at Rachel S. Donahue’s Beyond Chittering Cottage.

Also please follow Bandersnatch Books on Instagram or Facebook!

“Poetry is a little incarnation, giving body to what had been before invisible and inaudible.”
C.S. Lewis