{"product_id":"poems-from-terra-james-thomas-fletcher-9781537711133","title":"Poems from Terra","description":"\u003cb\u003e\"It may be profligate, but is it not life?\" asks Lord Byron. This is poetry with an edge.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eCombining grit and grandeur while mingling religion and sex, science and spirituality, this intense examination of life reveals the author's struggles with the nature of reality and existence, in language both simple and complex, erudite and approachable. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eShowing influences of Bukowski, Poe, Cohen, and a tinge of Greek mythology, the author examines wonder, pain, love, and fantasy. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"The Lizard and the Tamarind\" is a stirring tribute about the death of a fellow poet. \"Explanation of the Universe\" does a good job of fulfilling its goal. \"Square-Breasted Poem\" is a quirky romp through anatomy and modernist painting. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA strong and diverse volume that addresses themes with which we all grapple. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e[These poems]\u003ci\u003eare highly personal, experiential. Some of the experience seems to be supremely private. But what struck me most about them was the free association of the images, the kind of free flowing exuberance of the visual. The intensity of feeling is superior.... Their complexity is almost painful.... I was moved, confused, astounded, curious, excited.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e -- Ann Beals, University of Central Oklahoma \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eAs you would imagine in a collection called Terra, these poems will take you places. They compel you across varied planes of the mind: love, dreams, wonder, mourning. But how diverse your journey encompassing the night-beat of a flaneur, the death of a light bulb, a bricklayer's manifesto, a film noir dream, the spirals of a lover's earring--and an explanation of the universe. With wry metaphor yet steady vision, Fletcher spotlights the quirks of human longing and the enigmas of memory. Open it anywhere and you will find a memento to take with you.\u003c\/i\u003e -- Eva Bednar, Humber College, Canada \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eExplore these samples for a glimpse into Terra. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA TOURIST SEEKS ROME \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAbove the cobblestones\u003cbr\u003ein a lost park\u003cbr\u003eamong the ruined statues\u003cbr\u003ea headless couple lock in eternal embrace \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ethey are without names\u003cbr\u003etheir passions carved in rock\u003cbr\u003etheir gowns have become leaves and vines\u003cbr\u003egrowing, dying, blowing away \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ethe mouths of their souls\u003cbr\u003eseek lost lips of flesh and marble\u003cbr\u003erivulets of sinter\u003cbr\u003efill crevices like shadows\u003cbr\u003eleaves blow beneath her thighs\u003cbr\u003eand under his shoulders\u003cbr\u003etheir dead bone opens on the stone divan\u003cbr\u003eas I fall between them\u003cbr\u003eour limbs combine \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003etourists record the details \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ehow we flickered for an instant\u003cbr\u003elike a match in the rain \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eHALLEY'S COMET\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhen the moon is red as satin\u003cbr\u003eand larger than the myth of Halley's comet\u003cbr\u003ewhen silhouettes of elms meld \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003einto the night \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eat the edge of its circumference\u003cbr\u003eand our earth becomes black\u003cbr\u003eand empties itself into me \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eI smile in the crimson dark\u003cbr\u003eand search my pocket\u003cbr\u003efor a penny to rub, \u003cbr\u003e a wish\u003cbr\u003eand throw \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eI AM A BRICKLAYER\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMy hands are calloused\u003cbr\u003efrom the bark\u003cbr\u003eof brick, the furrows of the palm\u003cbr\u003estained with mortar dye\u003cbr\u003ethe powder from every\u003cbr\u003esack of cement clogs my pores \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eI crawl behind the wheel\u003cbr\u003emy boots caked with morning mud\u003cbr\u003eand imagine the comfort and quiet of home\u003cbr\u003ethe embrace and taste of her flesh\u003cbr\u003epulse of the shower\u003cbr\u003ethe sigh of warm socks on wet toes\u003cbr\u003eand awaken to the distant tinkling\u003cbr\u003eof pans and moist aromas\u003cbr\u003elike the back of a Cairo cafe \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eNo longer am I tied to the day\u003cbr\u003etomorrow the ache\u003cbr\u003ein my back will have dulled\u003cbr\u003etonight I do not commit suicide\u003cbr\u003eby hangover, tonight\u003cbr\u003emy mind is free\u003cbr\u003eto glow like the orange halo\u003cbr\u003eof the kiln\u003cbr\u003ewhere bricks are born\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e James Thomas Fletcher\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 153771113X\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781537711133\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Createspace Independent Publishing Platform\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 12\/09\/2016\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 188\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.57lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.43d","brand":"James Thomas Fletcher","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48459416011007,"sku":"9781537711133","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_a59c47e1-9c9f-4c31-b4c5-f62ed27ab495.jpg?v=1777409561","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/poems-from-terra-james-thomas-fletcher-9781537711133","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}