SOURCE: Gioia, Dana. “Eight Poets.” Poetry 140, no. 2 (May 1982): 102-14.

In the following excerpt, Gioia notes the lack of depth in the poems comprising A World of Difference.

When Heather McHugh published Dangers, her first book, in 1977, she was greeted by critics of all persuasions as an exciting new voice. There was nothing derivative or uncertain about her tough, worldly poems; and her brisk, witty style was a refreshing change from the morose, self-pitying tone of so many recent books. With her second volume, A World of Difference, once again she has proven that she is a poet to be taken seriously.

Despite its title, A World of Difference marks little change from her earlier book, not that in McHugh's case one would be anxious for too much change. She is still the poet of Dangers—with the same manic wit, the same brash, perceptive, and amusing manner. Like...