Wish Ave

“Lyrical and inconclusive” confide two fluttering voices—perhaps birds, perhaps hands—in the opening pages of this new work from Lynch (Pretty Tripwire), a haunting study of fateful human relationships and the damage we do ourselves as we damage others. It’s lyrical indeed, and if not exactly inconclusive then evanescent, even spooky as it pulls readers deep into its mysteries. The speaker recalls how Michiko, who has near-mythic status (“unfettered bright safe word she was”) suddenly left their neighborhood as a child. They shared a deep bond, but the speaker concedes “I hurt Michiko // …—with purpose?— / No, but with great carelessness,” and she dwells on it (if “[Michiko’s] forgotten the hurt I caused, is it gone”). Multiple voices help tell the story, and there’s a ceremonious, masque-like feel, with musical notations like “BRIDGE” and “PAUSE” throughout. Painting also matters, as the speaker reflects on Kandinsky’s abjuration “To harmonize the whole—the task in art” and portrays a love affair via one of J.M.W. Turner’s fiery paintings. Indeed, with paint escaping, snow on the melt, and the sink overflowing, one senses an individual on the verge of chaos.