There's a lot to like about this collection of poems by Margaret Ray. She approaches interesting topics I never expected to read in a poem like: "Getting Your Period at the Water Park," eating placenta, and Eve getting a divorce. However, those were not my favorites. I was wowed by the metaphor and simile poems: "Grief is a Sudden Room," and "The Clearing" in which happiness is like a half-tamed deer. I also enjoyed the creative approaches in "Expulsion Lessons but Replace the Garden with a Swamp" with its ah-ha ending; "Tourist" with its great opening; and "Transmission Received from Penelope in Deep Space," creating the experience of difficult communication through blank space.
Though an alter-ego Particle Physicist named Wanda appeals to me, the poems and the way they were sectioned off made me feel that they belonged in a different collection.
I'm very glad I read the poems before I read the foreword because I thought it took away from the work.
I liked the use of the meteorological symbol for a thunderstorm, but with the amount it was used, I wanted it explained at the beginning, or in a poem, and had looked it up online before I found it explained at the end. Having that note at the beginning when the symbol first appears would connect it more to the poems.
Though this is a collection of poems that, to me, did not sound better read aloud, it's a collection one can return to and enjoy again and again for its daring, creativity and wit. ( )

This book of poems is simultaneously quiet and brash, beginning one poem with the stillness of cold air and another the bloody death of an alligator. Ray's words occupy a beautiful intersection of grief and rage. and each poem sizzles with undertone. The vibes here are impeccable. Please read this book. ( )

I can't say I understood every poem but so many spoke to a truth of my experience and emotions that I was awed. ( )

Margaret Ray's collection of poetry is a rich exercise in dichotomies. From poem to poem, you go from abstract to literal, imaginary to very real, broken to renewed, high-concept to casual, and even traditional classical to modern. Out of context, it could seem like a disparate collection of works, but under the umbrella of the title, "Good Grief, the Ground" it becomes a thing of true human beauty. It is a deceivingly quick read, but carve out the the time to re-read each piece because more often than not, the simplest-looking line has much deeper meaning than at first thought. ( )

This collection of poetry by Margaret Ray is a compelling set of pieces that illustrate a vast range of situations. The reader is taken to the place of or can easily see what is described in the poems. Margaret Ray has created poetry that illustrates both feelings and occurrences. I’m quite glad I was able to snag a copy from LibraryThing Early Reviewer and I wish every success to Margaret Ray.