Corey Elizabeth Jackson’s Death Kindly Stopped For Me is a haunting, luminous collection that channels the spirit of Emily Dickinson while carving a voice all its own. Through meditations on mortality, transcendence, and the soul’s voyage beyond the veil, Jackson crafts poetry that is both graceful and profound. Divided into four sections, Death Befriended, Kindred Spirits, Death Released, and Soulscape the collection reimagines Death not as an adversary, but a quiet companion. Dickinson’s enigmatic tone lingers like a spectral echo, yet Jackson infuses each page with vivid, celestial imagery that feels strikingly original.

Jackson’s emotional range is remarkable. There’s a delicate balance of sorrow and tenderness throughout, most evident in poems like Death Wrapped a Shawl Around My Shoulder, where Death emerges as a caregiver gentle, yet unnerving. In Death Amongst the Daffodils, the afterlife glows with warmth, casting eternity as a sunlit field. Light and shadow dance across the verses, invoking Dickinson’s own paradoxes while offering fresh interpretation.

What distinguishes this collection most, however, is Jackson’s distinctive, modern voice. Poems like Barbie Could Not Stop for Death and With Covid Deaths We Can More Widely See ground the work firmly in the present, bringing contemporary resonance to timeless themes. These pieces are bold and thought-provoking, yet seamlessly integrated with the more classical compositions.

The illustrations by Daniel Schmelling deserve high praise. Ethereal and deeply emotive, they do more than accompany the text, they elevate it. Each image enriches the atmosphere, pulling the reader further into the dreamlike world Jackson constructs. The visual and verbal elements work in harmony, enhancing the immersive quality of the collection.

Jackson’s ability to evoke deep feeling with spare, lyrical lines is her greatest strength. When First I Saw My Baby Boy is heartrending in its simplicity a quiet elegy for a lost child. In contrast, Owl Ensconced on Oaken Branch offers quiet wisdom and gentle reflection. The final section, Soulscape, concludes the journey with wonder and serenity. Poems like Galaxies with Memories transform death into a cosmic return, a homecoming among the stars.

Death Kindly Stopped For Me: A Book of Poetry Inspired by Emily Dickinson is an essential reading for admirers of Dickinson, Poe, or Mary Oliver for anyone who cherishes introspective poetry that lingers long after the last line. Jackson doesn’t merely contemplate death she reimagines it. Her work invites us to walk with it, to find comfort in the mystery, and perhaps even, to dance.

Pages: 162 | ASIN : B0D1GL5J23