Extraordinary Sunshine Weaver

Terry Allen’s poetry collection, Waiting on the Last Train, is as delightful as the train rides I enjoyed as a child, imagining the fleeting lives of those who lived near the tracks and listening to the humorous tales told by fellow passengers about their dog Barney, a horse in pain, someone’s Auntie Gracie, and conversations between friends flaneuring on a summer afternoon. Allen’s prose poems are each a train trip starting from one point, such as a reference to Lon Chaney, and leaving us off at a surprise destination, Liz Cheney. A dramatist, Allen is the perfect fellow passenger as he is a master of dialogue and action as shown in the poems “Waiting on the Last Train”, “Let the Games Begin”, and “The Studio Era on Poverty Row”. His poems about celebrity and history display surprising twists and turns on the train route, which ends with a flourish with Charlie Chaplin “On the Shelf at Night”. Whether you are enjoying a train ride or waiting for the last train, you will enjoy this poetic journey. 

A Selection from the Book

Terry made a YouTube reading you may enjoy.