"Towards the winter solstice" by Timothy Steele (Swallow Press, 2006)

Poems from Kenyon review, Measure, Poetry, Southwest review, Threepenny review, etc. Unsurprisingly there are many iambics and lots of rhyming. I liked his "Missing Measures" book and have recommended it to people. I doubt that I'll recommend this book to non-formalists. I'm not used to reading such poetry nowadays, but I don't think that's the reason why some of it sounds pedestrian to me. E.g. -

The square had otherwise, a leafless tree And litter's swirling, sad agility; And densely packed surrounding buildings made The place, save at mid-day, a cheerless shade. (p.7)

"In the Memphis Airport" we see that

Some draw wheeled suitcases along Or from a beeping belt or purse Apply a cell phone to an ear; Some pause at banks of monitors Where times and gates for flight appear

"April 27, 1937" is 42 lines about the dangers of war. I don't sense much wisdom in the piece. E.g. -

That day in Spain has taught us to our cost, That there are lines that never should be crossed; The ignorance of leaders is not bliss If they're intent on tempting Nemisis

From "Didelphis Virginiana", about roadkill, we learn that

Many such creatures perish daily, nothing In evolution having readied them Against machinery: grief seems absurd. Nature herself, ever pragmatic, is Blithely indifferent to her child's departure

Maybe I've failed to interpret the intended tone. This sounds light -

Meanwhile the garden's thriving: rows once strict Are now a rioting of salad greens; Zucchinis threaten that, if left unpicked, They'll burgeon to the size of submarines; (p.56)

And this isn't saying anything new -

In such rich warmth, it's easy to relax And hard to credit calendars and clocks, Which register, among their other facts, The shorter days, the coming equinox (p.57)

I liked "The Sweet Peas" the most. From "Didelphis Virginiana" this is attractive - A mockingbird displays his wings, like someone/ Opening the panels of an overcoat/ To show he's come unarmed and should be trusted. And this section is better than most -

But we best loved stars rising here and there, Whether from hopes of something we might sow Or from a lonely impulse to declare The kinship of the lofty and the low (p.61)