Jayme Ringleb's "So Tall It Ends in Heaven" is a solid poetry collection, that never really gets off its feet. It feels as if the author is keeping us at a distance the whole time, which works for some poems but forces others to feel lacklustre. At times the writing is stilted because of this, forcing the poems to feel like they weren't truly meant to flow.

There are some really amazing moments in this book that stood out to me, where the human felt so present and true, such as:

I don't know

what there is between a woman and a man,
but you know how to make the body submissive
and brave: when your father’s God asks you
to heat something small and metal—a ball bearing, maybe
a fishhook or drywall nail—over a fire, to keep it in fire
until it glows, and then to swallow it, you do.

Ringleb, Jayme. So Tall It Ends in Heaven: Poems (p. 14). Tin House Books. Kindle Edition.

Ringleb has really fantastic control--of language, of pause and release of information, of revealing pieces slowly and subtly. I didn't always feel I was able to enter the poems, but there were individual moments that felt absolutely lovely.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I didn't catch the author's drift here. While all the things mentioned are random, they are dully presented. The emotions aren't captured well. Poetry is just a hit or miss. This was a miss for me.

Things mentioned:

Feathered goat, Satan's favorite idiot chicken, a real man keeping his pocket watch in the folds of his heart, and a newborn pig unable to unfold its legs.

To top it off:
"This man I'm seeing thinks his nipples are baby-grape-shaped and pale as two sun-faded pencil top erasers..."

Honestly? I just couldn't get into that. And that's okay. It's not my thing, but my partner really enjoyed this. They rated it 4/5 stars, so that's the rating I'll give it :)

I will confess that some of the book's meta-plot/theme of a son reconciling with his father slipped by me while reading, but I really enjoyed the collection nonetheless. The language is rich in detail without being florid, very readable and the queer themes are subtler in many poems but there nonetheless.

excellent - very lyrical and I enjoyed how he infused the landscape of the USA into the poems. The format on the kindle did not lend itself to ease of reading though.

This collection of poems is fantastic. The tone and imagery are wonderfully done. The way that the poems connect thematically makes this a very cohesive collection. It touches on childhood and love and family and loss, all in a really beautiful way. This is a really strong collection, and if you like poetry I think you’ll like it. Even if you don’t like poetry, I think this is worth it.

OVERALL
Overall, I thought this collection was the perfect length. I really respect the intentionality behind it.

WHAT I LIKED
I love how each poem had an individual theme but they were also cohesive as a collectoin.
I thought the order was well planned and helped take me on an emotional journey
I like the symbolism a lot
The collection feels super accessible, which is nice
My favorite piece was Love Poem to the Son My Father Wished For, which I thought was so raw and real. I also liked Game a lot. The title poem was also gorgeous
Most poems did a good job capturing very specific emotions in a very relatable way

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE
Sometimes, the formatting was kind of weird, which I wasn't a fan of but that's more of a personal preference
I didn't really understand why the collection was divided into parts. But, I thought the third one was strongest as a whole
Some poems felt very much like they were trying to be important and have quotable lines instead of just flowing naturally, but this was a rare thing

A wonderful book of poetry! Though I am not a versed poetry reader I very much enjoyed this work by Ringleb. I found his voice to be distinct and nuanced, I enjoyed how much was said with so little words. I found his writing to be a odd mixture of Armistead Maupin and Paulo Coelho, and thoroughly loved it. As a queer woman, I could related deeply to his struggles and but think anyone from any background would be moved by his prose. Overall, a wonderful debut!

Jayme Ringleb is a poet for the masses - the queer masses, the masses writ large, whomever can find themselves in this brilliant piece of writing.

A book of poetry perfect for all the feelings pride month stirs up - some pride, some sorrow & a lot of nostalgia.

So Tall It Ends in Heaven features beautiful poems that give a sense of place and sometimes sadness. My favorite poem was "Threesome with Sea Monsters and Theft" -, which contained such a vivid imagery of the sea. There is quite a bit of references to God, but the poems are not overly religious. The poems would sometimes end with a phrase, only to have the next poem include the same phrase to start, so there was a fluidity to them.