Poetry and About Poetry

My poem “A Matter of Gravity” is published in the Winter 2016 issue of Blue Heron Review

My poem "A Matter of Gravity" is published in the Winter 2016 issue of Blue Heron Review

Touch: The Journal of Healing will publish 2 more of my poems

Touch: The Journal of Healing will publish 2 more of my poems

Heart & Mind Zine has agreed to publish my poem "the Desert Rains"

Heart & Mind Zine has agreed to publish my poem “the Desert Rains”

Wayfare by Pattiann Rogers My rating: 5 of 5 stars Pattiann Rogers continues to be one of the best poets writing today, although her reputation may not be as widespread as some. In this 2008 collection, Rogers once again interweaves science, nature, the very personal, the psychological, and the philosophic in a lovely and sometimes whimsical tapestry. While there is whimsy in how she weaves, every word is seriously meant and seriously placed. The opening poem, “The Great Deluge and Its Coming” describes a torrent of water and creatures to reveal the unity of all being and the fragility of all living creatures in the face of “the ultimate stillness of the dependable void.” The collection is organized as if each section were a visit to a Concert Hall or a Museum or a natural habitat. If you love poetry and/or if you love life, spend some time with “Wayfare.” Pattiann Rogers is a great companion. View all my reviews

Wayfare by Pattiann Rogers My rating: 5 of 5 stars Pattiann Rogers continues to be one of the best poets writing today, although her reputation may not be as widespread as some. In this 2008 collection, Rogers once again interweaves science, nature, the very personal, the psychological, and the philosophic in a lovely and sometimes whimsical tapestry. While there is whimsy in how she weaves, every word is seriously meant and seriously placed. The opening poem, "The Great Deluge and Its Coming" describes a torrent of water and creatures to reveal the unity of all being and the fragility of all living creatures in the face of "the ultimate stillness of the dependable void." The collection is organized as if each section were a visit to a Concert Hall or a Museum or a natural habitat. If you love poetry and/or if you love life, spend some time with "Wayfare." Pattiann Rogers is a great companion. View all my reviews

My poem “Blackberry Reduction” is included in the new issue of Three Line Poetry .

My poem "Blackberry Reduction" is included in the new issue of Three Line Poetry .

Route 7 Review will publish my poem “Emily’s Ghost Machine” later this year.

Route 7 Review will publish my poem "Emily's Ghost Machine" later this year.

Heron Tree will publish my poem “After Bashō”

Heron Tree will publish my poem “After Bashō”

Dickinson: Selected Poems and Commentaries by Helen Vendler My rating: 5 of 5 stars Emily Dicksinson’s poetry was unlike just about everything being written at the time by her more famous mostly male contemporaries. She distilled complexities of experience and emotion into language that truly told it slant. Her verse is like Shakespeare’s sonnets which are are at their most difficult because they contain deep and sometimes contradictory emotion. Helen Vendler proves again to be a great companion for the reader, unpacking and guiding. The best way to read this selection is to read each poem, Vendler’s commentary, and then reread that poem once or twice more. Windows open. I cannot say I always agree with Vendler’s interpretations, but they are always illuminating. View all my reviews

Dickinson: Selected Poems and Commentaries by Helen Vendler My rating: 5 of 5 stars Emily Dicksinson's poetry was unlike just about everything being written at the time by her more famous mostly male contemporaries. She distilled complexities of experience and emotion into language that truly told it slant. Her verse is like Shakespeare's sonnets which are are at their most difficult because they contain deep and sometimes contradictory emotion. Helen Vendler proves again to be a great companion for the reader, unpacking and guiding. The best way to read this selection is to read each poem, Vendler's commentary, and then reread that poem once or twice more. Windows open. I cannot say I always agree with Vendler's interpretations, but they are always illuminating. View all my reviews

The Red Earth Review has accepted a 2nd poem for future publication. Like the first “A Last Bend in the Huron River,” this second poem “Vessel” is from an unpublished collection about my mother.

The Red Earth Review has accepted a 2nd poem for future publication. Like the first "A Last Bend in the Huron River," this second poem "Vessel" is from an unpublished collection about my mother.

My new Facebook Author Page is live. Please visit often and Like it .

My new Facebook Author Page is live. Please visit often and Like it .

My new Facebook Author Page is live. Please visit often and Like it .

Unpeopled Eden by Rigoberto González My rating: 4 of 5 stars Rigoberto Gonzalez writes for the missing, the dead, the mourning, the lost and about unspeakable loss. He give s voice to the voiceless, wives without husbands, sons without fathers. The poetry is beautiful in many places. Modern Central American interweaves with the mythical Aztec realm of th dead. Language warps to fit the damage and destruction. Whole villages are ghost towns filled with memory. So much poetry today is topicless solipsism. Unpeopled Eden studies murder, the drug trade, and the destructive effects of emigration to North American in oblique but vivid ways. Gonzalez’s collection forces us to see hard realities without ever becoming polemical. View all my reviews

Unpeopled Eden by Rigoberto González My rating: 4 of 5 stars Rigoberto Gonzalez writes for the missing, the dead, the mourning, the lost and about unspeakable loss. He give s voice to the voiceless, wives without husbands, sons without fathers. The poetry is beautiful in many places. Modern Central American interweaves with the mythical Aztec realm of th dead. Language warps to fit the damage and destruction. Whole villages are ghost towns filled with memory. So much poetry today is topicless solipsism. Unpeopled Eden studies murder, the drug trade, and the destructive effects of emigration to North American in oblique but vivid ways. Gonzalez's collection forces us to see hard realities without ever becoming polemical. View all my reviews

My poem "Schrödinger’s Anticipation" is on page 65 of the January 2016 issue of Dark Matter Journal .

My poem “Schrödinger’s Anticipation” is on page 65 of the January 2016 issue of Dark Matter Journal .

My poem “ Final Inventory ” has been published at Two Cities Review online. This poem used some of Mom’s final words when she was trying to keep memories alive,

My poem “ Final Inventory ” has been published at Two Cities Review online. This poem used some of Mom's final words when she was trying to keep memories alive,

GFT Press will publish 2 of my poems online in March & 1 more in its print  journal in April.

GFT Press will publish 2 of my poems online in March & 1 more in its print journal in April.

Gravel Magazine will publish my poem “River and Father” in an upcoming issue. 

Folia magazine will publish my poem “The Darkening Horizon” in its e-magazine later this month.

Folia magazine will publish my poem "The Darkening Horizon" in its e-magazine later this month.

Gravel Magazine will publish my poem “River and Father” in an upcoming issue.

Gravel Magazine will publish my poem "River and Father" in an upcoming issue. 

Three Line Poetry will publish one of my poems.

Three Line Poetry will publish one of my poems.

The Yellow Chair Review has once again accepted 1 of my poems for future publication.

The Yellow Chair Review has once again accepted 1 of my poems for future publication.

The Write Place at the Write Time has accepted two more of poems---these for publication in the Fall of 2016. My thanks to the editors who have accepted two of my poems previously: “ Betrayals ” (pp. 23-24) “ Still Life: Old Man with Mockingbird ” (p. 2)

The Write Place at the Write Time has accepted two more of poems—these for publication in the Fall of 2016. My thanks to the editors who have accepted two of my poems previously: “ Betrayals ” (pp. 23-24) “ Still Life: Old Man with Mockingbird ” (p. 2)

The Gary Snyder Reader: Prose, Poetry, and Translations by Gary Snyder My rating: 5 of 5 stars Snyder’s Best of Collection An excellent selection of the prose and poetry of Gary Snyder, this collection reveals the development of his spritual, ecological and poetical thinking. Throughout is a faith in the unity of all being. Some of the journal entries drag a bit and may be skipped; but if you are a student of Snyder, read the whole volume. View all my reviews

The Gary Snyder Reader: Prose, Poetry, and Translations by Gary Snyder My rating: 5 of 5 stars Snyder's Best of Collection An excellent selection of the prose and poetry of Gary Snyder, this collection reveals the development of his spritual, ecological and poetical thinking. Throughout is a faith in the unity of all being. Some of the journal entries drag a bit and may be skipped; but if you are a student of Snyder, read the whole volume. View all my reviews

My poem “ Runes “is on page 5 of These Fragile Lilacs Volume 1 Issue II Winter 2016

My poem “ Runes “is on page 5 of These Fragile Lilacs Volume 1 Issue II Winter 2016

My poem " Runes "is on page 5 of These Fragile Lilacs Volume 1 Issue II Winter 2016