Bøger udgivet af Grayson Books

In Ruined Music, the failures that come with living are redeemed by the lyricism, tenderness, and humor of their telling. Valentina Gnup says in one poem, "I want the rain to fall like petals / every morning across the thirsty world." The poems in this book seem to do just that.

This is a fictional verse-story of Ann Gallagher, also known as Dill, jailed in 1850s Ireland-just one little girl trying to make her way in the world even as the evils of famine, nationalism, and anti-Catholicism conspire to test her courage and restrain her from finding her true Irish roots. She is jailed for the crime of stealing a parsnip. In Kilmainham Gaol she meets Tommy, a boy who will eventually be exiled to Australia, and Róisín, a female pirate, and Mary, a pregnant teen. Although Dill and these others are fictional characters, their experiences accurately reflect those of far too many people who suffered through similar ordeals. The stunning lyricism of the poems in this book make their situation all the more poignant.

Lush poems about specific paintings and artists populate The Goldfish Window and leave the reader wanting more. Among the many painters and photographers one can find peering from these poems are Monet, Kandinsky, O'Keeffe, Vuillard, Cassatt, Van Gogh, Stieglitz, and Cezanne. The stunning imagery and lyric voice of Lisa Beech Hartz make this an unforgettable collection. Lovers of art and of poetry will enjoy this poetry book immensely.

Winner of the 2017 Grayson Books Poetry Prize, Our Hands a Hollow Bowl praises the world, while seeing it with full clarity. The tilt of a rusty mailbox, sparrows on a wire, an argument silenced by the sight of a huge and ancient tree...it's the small things that hold the poet's attention, and the poems in this book reveal the truths she finds in them. The graceful, poignant poems in this book reflect the wisdom of a mature writer, a woman at home in the language and sure of her craft. Our Hands a Hollow Bowl is a beautiful read.

In his book River Scar, accomplished poet Paul Martin chronicles the coming of age in an immigrant Catholic family during the middle of the 20th century, with the Lehigh River ever-present as witness and sometimes, accomplice. These poems are gems of stunning clarity, power, and affection.

Winner of the 2018 Grayson Books Poetry Contest, Edward Wilson's In a Rich Country is a very American collection of poems that speak clearly and eloquently. The poems are tender and sharp, sophisticated but deeply authentic. A variety of people make their appearances in the poems, and one recognizes them as relatives and neighbors. There is real emotional depth to the work here, without reliance on sentimentality.

Four Bits is a clever collection of short pieces by a masterful poet and story-teller. In each of these fifty 50-word prose poems, John Stanizzi dazzles with his perception, humor, and story-telling. "Four Bits," a colloquial term meaning fifty cents, is worth much more than spare change. Humor, pathos, and insight into the human condition radiate from the poems in this collection.

In Home Team, readers are treated to Edwin Romond's nuanced and eloquent story telling. The poems in this small volume bring us fly balls in summer skies, runners rounding the bases, old-time heroes, fathers and sons, and vivid memories of America's favorite pastime.

Maybe I Should Fly is a collection of poems written in English by two young Afghan women. The Labib sisters, seldom given opportunities to be fully seen or heard in their own country, use poetry to express their deepest concerns, fears, joys and perspectives on life. This volume of poetry, which may be considered poetry of witness, provides valuable insights to anyone wishing to understand what it is like for the women of Afghanistan.

Connecticut River Review is an international poetry journal sponsored by the Connecticut Poetry Society and published annually. Among its offerings are the winning poems of several contests that the Connecticut Poetry Society sponsors, as well as poems by writers from throughout the United States and beyond its borders.

Each poem in What Word for This explores a word from another language that expresses something we have no term for in English. Certainly language shapes our experience even as it attempts to express it. In these luminous poems, Marion Boyer explores myriad human experiences of time, space, memory, longing, and the ineffable.

This collection of poems addresses global warming and climate change. The Biblical figure Noah appears in many of the poems, seeming as real and contemporary as your next-door neighbor. The complexity of our love for the world, even as we disregard it, is evident in these nuanced poems. This poetry book is also a book of history and science, spirituality and ecology.

This follow-up volume to the immensely popular Poetry of Presence presents a feast of mindfulness poems. The poems are skillfully crafted and highly accessible. Its authors speak from a rich variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and life-paths. Most are contemporary or recent poets.Many of the poems delve into relational or social mindfulness, exploring "the tough stuff" of living among others with presence. These poems invite us to face relational challenges without turning away from them. They encourage us to seek equanimity, and to address challenges with compassion, hope, courage, and humility.

Love's Test is the winner of the 2019 Grayson Books Chapbook Competition. Life's most fundamental questions are raised in this elegant short poetry collection by Jed Myers. In the end, the poems in Love's Test acknowledge our separateness, and our struggles to connect, but also affirm the power of our willingness to try and try again. A poet who writes with great tenderness, honesty, and grace, Myers has won many awards for his work.

Forty Voices Strong is a robust anthology of poetry by contemporary Scottish poets. In it are unflinching portraits of people whose lives are full of laughter and suffering, friendship and loss, pride and determination. Although the style and subject matter of the poems vary greatly, in general they are notable for the compassion, wisdom, and humor they express.

Six talented poets from Connecticut high schools, winners of the Fresh Voices Student Poetry Competition, are represented in Fresh Voices 2019. The Fresh Voices Competition is a beloved component of the Hill-Stead Museum's annual Sunken Garden Poetry Festival. The culmination of this highly selective competition is a performance by the winners on the main stage, before a live audience, on closing night of the festival. In 2019, as in the 25 previous years of this competition's existence, these outstanding young poets express their perspectives in lively, thought-provoking poems.