An ode to a tampon would once upon a time have been understood as a mock ode, and none but a man would have written it. Olds is evidently in earnest and for that she will not be forgiven. ‘Ode to the ...

The Elemental Odes must be some of the most accessible and enjoyable poems in Neruda’s prodigious oeuvre. And while his poetry is highly visual, intensely coloured, his interests are not those of ...