THE END OF INNOCENCE Gail Fox. Ottawa, ON: Oberon Press, 1988. #pp., paper, $14.95. ISBN 0-88750-739-5. cloth, $29.95. ISBN 0-88750-738-7. CIP. Grades 11 and up / Ages 16 and up Reviewed by Donna Doyle. Volume 17 Number 3 1989 May The End of Innoncence is a collection of complex poetry written from 1969 to 1986. It deals with drinking, mental illness, birth, death, relationships, love and God. 'The Flight of the Pterodactyl" is a long poem with graphic descriptions of the beast's savagery and a recognition of its necessity: I get along as any creature must who has no wits. "Cartoons," despite its title, is a gruesome piece in which a woman draws cartoons on her wrists with an "artistic razor." The pain and distressing images of these and other poems are balanced by a number of joyful celebrations. "Memory of Birth," "Jason Becoming" and "Lines of Contentment" explore motherhood; "In the Playpen" is warm and playful with Jason as the "tamer" of pink bears and brown giraffes; and 'The Mexican" and "Houses of God" deal with a means of escape from pain. In "Absolutes" Fox rebels against mediocrity: Lord, give me wings that will get me up, and if I crash, give me the courage of spilled blood. The End of Innocence shows us absolutes. Gail Fox has a unique view of Iife and her expression of it is never mediocre. l would highly recommend this book. Donna Doyle, D'Escousse, NS.