SOURCE: A review of May Out West and Nature: Old and New, in Western American Literature, Vol. 31, Fall, 1996, p. 270.

In the following review, Gunter praises May Out West and Nature: Old and New, commending both Swenson's poetic voice and her technical mastery.

The latest two books released by the late Utah poet May Swenson remind us of the scope and the precision of her gift. They are treasures for the Swenson enthusiast as well as for the general reader.

May Out West would be a starting place for readers new to Swenson's work. A carefully selected and beautifully presented edition of thirty-four poems, it contains two previously unpublished: "The Seed of My Father" and "White Moon." This book is not just for Westerners, though they will relish the portrait of our landscape it offers: it is for all who value their connection with the earth that sustains us...