Metropolitan Tang is Linda Bamber’s first book of poetry, a debut that is erudite, urban and urbane. Whether she is examining the breakup of her marriage or watching bulls in a field, considering Derrida’s concepts of “presence” or her hairdresser’s less theoretical philosophy, Ms. Bamber turns over images and ideas until she finds their proper relations, making meaning out of random juxtapositions, sense out of chaos, or, if nothing else, a good joke out of a bad situation. Her voice, sensitive and, at the same time, wry, is clear throughout, uniquely hers.