The virtues of Grainne Tobin's poetry—subtlety, cleverness, a succinct wisdom, and exhilarating formal dexterity—make the thematic risk-taking in her work and the wry and often raucous humor under the most desperate conditions, both manageable and fruitful. Fearless but with a serious and intense capacity for empathy, Tobin gives readers an expansive and challenging collection of poems.