Reed Whittemore's eight collections of poems deploy elements of astringent wit and metrical grace along a broad front of wry social commentary ("Americanized Auden" is James Dickey's phrase for the tone of much of Whittemore's verse). Whittemore is often compared with Ogden Nash in a context of usually dismissive references to light verse, and many critics feel that his poetry lacks the high seriousness needed to complement his infallible ear for verse rhythms. Admirers like Howard Nemerov, however, laud Whittemore's civility and wit, lamenting that the humor and accessibility of his poems have hurt him unfairly among the New Critics. All observers nevertheless praise the agility with which his syllables sort themselves out and his sharp eye for vanities both personal and social. Furthermore, his own criticism has a sparkling surface attributable to an urbane mind familiar with much of the best that has been thought and said...