Book Review: Immoral Thoughts & Eternal Poems by Bennett W. McLoughlin

Immoral Thoughts & Eternal Poems
Bennett W. McLoughlin
Orphic Press (2010)
9780692007297
200 pages

Immoral Thoughts & Eternal Poems by Bennett W. McLoughlin is a modern poetry collection offering readers a window to the poet’s life experiences. He shows us his pain without evoking pity, his belief in God without preaching, and his triumphs without arrogance. By the end of a book we have a better understanding of who the artist is through his shared hopes and dreams, successes and failures, and most importantly, we see his personal growth.

The book is divided into six parts with 175 titles, each penned between 2001 and 2009. In Part 1: Immoral Thoughts the selections feature rhyme and a younger man questioning his world. In “Heaven” he writes Ever since the age of seven I wondered if on top of clouds existed heaven. In another Part 1 favorite, “Life’s Wardrobe,” the author notes something we all realize as we mature, what I want to change doesn’t, who I don’t expect to does.

“Emptiness and Cheap Thrills” is, for me, one of the strongest selections in the book. It is also the title of Part 2. The poem shows a man ready to cast youth aside and meet new challenges. He writes, enter the realm of possibility, by eliminating the negativity, identifying and overtaking obstacles, actively seeking new opportunities. Serious events are topics in Part 2, such as an apparent suicide in “Still Here.” Then, on the lighter side, he examines the confusion over the inconsistent actions of the opposite sex in “She’s So Mysterious.”

McLoughlin draws on his darker side in writing Part 3: Death of a Poet. In “Tower of Stone” he pens Love is hanging out of reach, as madness comes to touch me, the demons have been unleashed. There is evidence of a man aware of his own mortality in “Death Under Fire” and perhaps considering a need for change in “Diagnostic” where he says, Sinking this ship down and taking with me the good, the bad, and everything else. McLoughlin seems to cast this gloom aside in “Where Does Darkness Go?” where he states, I will sign off on this darkness, until I find a use for it.

In Part 4: Everything In Between, I saw a return to optimism. In “Strange Sky” he says, Under the promise of a new moon, I have nothing to worry about. Other highlights in this part are “11th Hour (Who Knows?),” “Unfulfillment,” “Semolina,” and “This Year’s Model” making Part 4 for me the strongest group of the six.

In Part 5: Somewhere, I found my favorite of the collection, “Dark Tendrils.” This selection shows personal awareness as the author tips his hat to where he finds himself in life. He states, Death, fear and desire don’t inspire urgency. I believe we all would like to come to a point in life where this line becomes true.

In Part Six: Ecstatic Days, the final chapter is another choice selection called “Emily.” For me, the author could be welcoming readers into his world and into his wonderful book when he wrote, we have everything in common-my heart is open so come on in. Immoral Thoughts and Eternal Poems is a journal of McLoughlin’s everyday struggles over almost ten years. The compilation captivates with vibrant description and remarkable imagination. It is impossible not to identify with this diverse work. You’ll laugh, feel a sense of sadness, love, spirituality, loss and more as the author touches on life’s every emotion through his personal evolution. Highly Recommended.

Reviewed by William Potter for Reader’s Choice Book Reviews

Available in print and ebook/kindle at Amazon.com