Brenda Hillman's 'Extra Hidden Life, Among the Days

The Los Angeles Times Book Review section spotlights Extra Hidden Life, Among the Days , the new book of poetry by SMC Olivia Filippi Professor of Poetry Brenda Hillman. In the article “Brenda Hillman's 'Extra Hidden Life, Among the Days" ponders how poetry can help us chronicle, engage, grieve,” the Times notes how Hillman's 10th collection of poetry is an artisitc balm for coping with personal and societal strife. "These poems propose that what art can give us, amid public turmoil that, for many, feels poignantly personal, is a communal forum to air our innermost feelings, a force to steady us against torrents of tweets and headlines, and an intimate megaphone to amplify our anger and pain. 'We don't read recipes at the graves/ We don't read tracts & theories at the graves," writes Hillman — we read poetry.'"