DL Lang helps carry the banner for social change to create the loving world we want with liberty, justice, housing, safety, food, education, healthcare, and poetry for all.
– Nina Serrano
Check out what people are saying online about my books!
Read customer reviews below!
(Agree? Disagree? Write your own reviews.)
Wanderings: Selected Poems by D.L. Lang
Gary Allen rated it ⭐️⭐️ Band of sisters
This selection of 25 short poems reveals the major themes of the poet: acceptance, sisterhood, fear of change, longing for simplicity. Some read as if lyrics to new folk songs, with recurring rhymes, including a passage with one rhyming sound ending 8 successive lines. If you are a devotee of the group mind of communes, kibbutzes or cults, you should find much cause for happiness here.
Steven Joseph rated it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Joyous Read
I loved the imagery and the tremendous sense of optimism that is blended into each poem. They describe experiences in eloquent terms and they leave you wanting a bit more. Which is how it should be!
M.A. Dubbs rated it⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Great work!
Well polished and great writing! Really loved the poems about Judaism since I feel it is underrepresented in literature and prose.
Miles Taylor-Charlemagne rated it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Different kind of poetry, but I love it!
Just picked this book randomly, but I loved it! Different types of poetry I’ve never was before. This was a first and a great read with many different stories to tell! D.L Lang is incredible! Definitely recommend!
Poet Loiterer
Poems that embrace spoken-word rhythms and hippie principles, inspired by the author’s love of music and nature, her peace activism, and her gratitude for Jewish community. “There’s music and Torah both running through my soul,” she observes—a quirky combination that brings to mind a Jewish Janis Joplin. In the satirical “Doves in Season,” the traditional peace symbol is being hunted. “Fear not the rocking boat,” another poem advises, encouraging readers to question racism, capitalism, and America’s reliance on weapons.
—Kirkus Reviews
Midnight Strike
Lang’s latest collection of poetry is a cri de coeur on the injustices of contemporary life. Lang’s bold, erudite language will empower and uplift readers: “Until all women are safe from violence, so that a woman can exist in any space without fear, we march!” Such pieces leap off the page and demand to be read aloud to release their crackling energy. Skeptics who deem protest-oriented verse to be ineffective or outmoded will struggle with most of Lang’s writing, but for others, it will be a persuasive call to action. A forthright, energizing collection.
– Kirkus Reviews
Dragonfly Tomorrows and Dog-Eared Yesterdays
An ingenious visionary and virtuous human moral-compass, Lang makes writing poetry seem effortless, hypnotizing us with fantasy-like analogies that cleverly unravel meaningful and philosophical multi-layered themes. Each theme underlines and mirrors many different colors and faces of life and humanity.
—Realistic Poetry International
Amazon customer reviews:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ D.L. Lang is a rockin’ poet! – You can’t miss with this or any of D.L.’s poetry books. She is currently (2018) the Poet Laureate for Vallejo, California, and she does a wonderful job of making poetry for the people and creating gatherings for her community! She’s a very thoughtful, positive-thinking, and accessible person, and a great poet besides. If you get to hear her read, you’re in for a treat, and she’s always bringing out fresh thoughts to ponder. She has a lovely way with language, often tinted with a bit of humor when appropriate.
-SerendipityUppity
Armor Against the Dawn
As a collection of poems spanning pivotal subjects, Armor Against the Dawn is a complex
representation of the poet’s passionate views. The collection is layered with expressive thought
and candid revelations of the poet’s position on multiple current day social events. Insightful, as
well as bold, the collection is infused with an underlying theme of a continual searching for
answers, for understanding, and for resolution.–Realistic Poetry International
Amazon customer reviews:
-Michael Brandon Phillips
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ – Revolutionary and Empowering! – The words she writes are so empowering. Definitely my favourite poet! Love the freedom, peace and love that bleeds through every single word written. Great read!
Tea & Sprockets
Tea & Sprockets: A Modern American Poetry Book is a soulful collection of over a hundred poems that will make you laugh, make you think, and leave you breathless. If you’re a lifelong fan of poetry or just looking for a good place to get started, this book is for you!
-Kindle Fire Department Book of the Day 3/21/2013
Amazon customer reviews:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Poetry is my guilty little pleasure. It is what I read when I am feeling sad and want to wallow in my self-pity. It is also what I read when life is so good it just can’t get any better and I want to be sure to enjoy the moment. Poetry keeps me sane. That being said, I don’t consider my knowledge of poetry to be such that I would make a practice of reviewing it. But sometimes something comes along that I like so much I feel I just have to share. But let it be known that I bring no credentials to the table when I write a review of a poetry book. All I bring is my love of poetry and my enjoyment of the author’s work.In this case, D. L. Lang’s collection of poem “Tea & Sprockets” is one of those poetry books that caught my interest. The poems are robust, well crafted and pull the reader into the web of the author’s imagination and emotion all the while leaving room for the reader to interpret to suit.It would be hard to choose a favorite in a collection so varied but I have to say that I have a few. Those concerning losses especially spoke to me but there were many others that explored the joy of life that were just as moving. All in all I would say there is something for everyone and every mood in this collection and I recommend you download a copy, settle back with a nice beverage and enter into the world of the author’s imagination. Karen Bryant Doering, Parents’ Little Black Book MistBlueEeyore@gmail.com |
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Awesome poems! Dinah said the thoughts in her poems echoed throughout her soul until finding their way into this book. By the end, they were echoing throughout my soul. Listen to the video, then get the book even if you do not usually read poetry. – Gary P. Thaller |
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ D.L. Lang writes with clarity, wit and meaning. Totally worth the price of admission, just don’t let the little Kindle light keep you up at night reading it. – Ed Zimmerman |
I love all the poems in this book. My favorite one is: Short How can it be that I live in pain, When all around I see only gain, How can it be that I long for someone, When I am surrounded by everyone? How can it be that magic fades? Or is it just emotions’ shades? If you love poems, you will love this book. Eagerly waiting for more poem books from her!! – Sean |
| ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I don’t usually read poetry because some of it is just too wordy and vague. That is not true of this book of poetry! The poems are very direct, you do not have to guess what the meaning is. But yet, they are descriptive and well written. – Terrie T |
Tea and Sprockets is honest. The poems speak of isolation, of feeling different from one’s peers, of living in a time of perpetual war. However, Tea and Sprockets also speaks of enduring love, hope and a longing for peace within the poet and for the entire world. Some of my favorites (so far) are Roman Clock, Naive Observations of a Situational Pacifist, Exist, The Rat Race, and Chameleon. I’ve been taking this book with me wherever I go. Thank you for giving your work to the world, D.L. Lang. That, itself, is a great act of peace. – Amy Gioletti, Author of Woman Bone⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ – Great collection of contemporary poetry ‘Tea & Sprockets’ offers the reader many moments of poetic enjoyment. There are some really good poems in this collection that cover the full spectrum of life. There’s something for everyone to enjoy in this book. – Colin G. Smith |
Finding the magic in the every day. A lovely collection full of surprises and joys. I highly recommend this collection. – Helen C. Page |
Abundant Sparks
Amazon customer reviews:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ – A Collection of Poetry that Shows off the Poets Talents I found this collection of poetry to be exceptional in its diversity and intensity. The selection of poems gives the reader an excellent feel for this budding star poet’s abilities in writing and observation. The book also shows that the poet has a good feel for her readers, in the order that the poetry was presented. Overall, the best book of poetry that I have read in quite some time. – Eric Michael |
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ – A Contemporary Poetry Collection Purchased this poetry book on a whim and grateful that I did. I found many of the spiritual pieces talking to me and I giggled at more than a few of the silly pieces. With over 60 poems and varied themes there is something for everyone in this collection. – Alice Byers |
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ – Another beautiful collection from this gifted poet Lang’s facility with language never ceases to astonish me. And she does it again in this new collection. If you want an example, read the first poem, Penguin’s Prayer. A must read. – Helen C. Page |
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Abundant Sparks of Brilliance! From deeply (and universally) personal to powerfully observant, Diana Lang is a brilliant poetess. She moves from enchanting phrases, such as “Seeking wisdom. I am a Jew. Brownies burning in the oven” and “In the river, rowers from the nearest educational palace.”To observing modern life: Sleep is a luxury…. – Julia BuschElectric suns destroying rhythms here since before time””Manufactured neon bulbs flickering in their Inconsistent rhythms like an erratic heartbeat…””The ever present ticking of the silver encrusted pocket watch Hanging from the stranger’s trench coat, shakes me from my dream.”To images of what life could be: “The earth no longer quakes” and you feel the earth quaking in fear. Her poem “Silver Winged Predators” beautifully, and very powerfully, presents life as a strengthening, learning experience. Her own heartfelt losses resonate. “If it Bleeds, It Leads!” holds the anguish of too many who have experienced, up front and personal, the atrocities of our world.Then there are the breaks we all need, like “Silly Purple Chrome Poem,” five lines that lead to a smile. The goosebumps of powerful distillations tune the reader at the book’s beginning with poetry that appears to be the author’s most recent verse.D.L. (Diana) Lang is a name to note and remember. Highly recommended reading. |
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Eclectic Excellence This eclectic collection of about 70 poems from poet D.L. Lang embodies the spirit of American poetry–diverse and without rules.While “Penguin’s Prayer” was replete with alliteration, few other of Lang’s works used that theme.I got through about four verses of “Snarkadelic Word Smith Awaits the Penguin Whisperer” and it reminded me *strongly* of one of my favorite poets in high school. That was a long time ago, and I had to concentrate and try to remember the words. Then, it came to me. Karl Shapiro’s “Auto Wreck.””You” was in iambic pentameter. That was refreshingly traditional, but with a twist. “Perpetually 26” hints at haunting memories of Lang’s native Oklahoma, lamenting the loss of a good friend “The Harder We Fall” recounts a bitter ending of a friendship that languishes without mutual respect. That was painful to read. Clearly the poet does not wish to return to that space.While “The Wall Between Us” elicits a perpetual turmoil of closeness, “Today” radiates her complete satisfaction with the love in her life. “Fired” is totally Ralph Ginzburg. Short, but one of my favorites You probably don’t know D.L. Lang; I don’t know her either. Or do I? After reading this outstanding collection of original works, I feel that in a strong sense, I do. I believe you will too, and you’ll find your time reading Abundant Sparks joyfully well spent. – J.A. Wallace |
Heaven is Portable
Although there are many poet dreamers among us, very few have successfully initiated a resurgence of late 1960s ideals into literary action such as D.L. Lang in her recent book Heaven is Portable: New and Collected Poems.
At the beginning of the book, we enter a parallel universe to our tangible world through dreaming, hopes, a quest for joy and a meditation on how “there is never enough love in this world.” Although from Vallejo, there are traces of Berkeley in the kind spirit D.L. Lang imbues in her work, akin to the essence of performance poets such as COPUS in San Francisco and the Ellyn Maybe Band in Los Angeles.
Here is an excerpt from her poem “I Fly to You on a Song”:
“There may be dark clouds over my eyes,
but I can still appreciate rainbows.
I may possess a broken heart,
but I can still appreciate love.”She then brings it all down to Earth, relaying observations stemming from places she’s been and people she’s interacted with on her journeys. One of my favorites from this sojourn segment of Heaven is Portable is the poem “Handpan,” which demonstrates Lang’s creative style:
“Ghosts of opossums vanishing into thin air, midnight farmers harvesting to escape the heat
as neon flamingos turn into ice cream,
and coyotes scatter off into the moonlight.”Lang then shifts her sights with a fair share of nature poems that present the poet as one who may prefer the company of wildlife and animals’ undisturbed habitats over the havoc of humans. Just when you consider whether she might go into a Robinson Jeffers direction with the pattern of her poems, she reels humankind into her sphere as an integral component to her poetic goals and influence.
Lang’s poem “On the Eve of the Revolution” is a fine example of this vision. Here’s a sample:“While our brothers and sisters demand justice, injustice continues to be served on a silver platter
with a side of glittering gaslighting
and platitudes from those claiming to be leaders.”The book quickly builds up momentum in the revolutionary direction as it beckons the necessity for resolution to the unsolved problems in American life. D.L. Lang is a poet of protest, calling on people to assemble to directly confront social injustices and generate progressive change.
From “The Magic of a Song”:
“Powerful words spark empowerment,
moving you from inaction to action,
acting as a companion,
carving the soundtrack of your sacred journey,
as you dance forth into the embrace of the universe.”The idealism in Heaven is Portable is infectious. Coming from me, that says a lot. I’m not usually compelled by uplifting literature — as my mindset often relates to a more pessimistic magnification of the future in a sci-fi lit way. Yet, there are rare instances where optimistic poetry pierces my armor and reignites my belief that fantasy-like dreams of a better world can become a reality. D.L. Lang’s poems harken back to the promise of the 1960s revived in the 2020s. Such promise of a more utopian world is prevalent in Heaven is Portable, as evidenced in this sample from the title poem:
“Heaven is portable.
It whispers the language of possibility.
It hums the melodies of the soul.
Hiding between holy notes,
it yearns to be rediscovered.”—Daniel Yaryan
