SAILERS, Cynthia. Lake Systems. Oakland: Tougher Disguises: 2004. First Edition. Trade paperback. 202x177mm. 76pp. Very Good.

In Lake Systems, Cynthia Sailers leads us through painterly landscapes set with unusual amenities and a public -- as diverse as one would find in any urbane American setting -- going about their business as if we (the audience) weren't watching. In these poems, Sailers has drafted the plans for a grand architectural structure big enough to enclose everything seen, read, and processed -- but she doesn't enclose it -- rather, she creates a series of perpetually open doorways, each a living and breathing diorama. Like a canvas strewn with abstract gestures and images we subconsciously recognize, these poems create an illusory sense-field, where one can feel the cool lake, whoop with the boys and girls, and enter the many paintings hung in Sailers' world. Entering this book is to enter a scene so rich one could become entangled in its aquatic systems and potentially discover an entirely new life form.