Melissa Kwasny Poradie kníh

Explores the age-old relationship between humans and animals, providing fascinating details about the historic and current use of animals as clothing

Melissa Kwasny's sixth poetry collection showcases her mastery of language and imagery, building on her previous works such as Pictograph and Reading Novalis in Montana. Recognized for her contributions to poetry, she has received prestigious awards including the Cecil Hemley Memorial Award and the Alice Fay Di Castagnola Award. Her writing often explores themes of nature and perception, reflecting a deep engagement with the world around her.

Exploring the interplay between nature and sacred art, Melissa Kwasny's poetry collection reflects her journeys to ancient pictograph and petroglyph sites in Montana. Each poem captures the essence of the natural world, infusing personal significance into experiences like starlight glimpses and forest burns, symbolizing life's impermanence and the aging process. Kwasny emphasizes a reciprocal relationship with nature, suggesting that it imparts meaning to our lives as much as we do to it. The collection culminates in a cohesive pictograph, symbolizing a bridge to our existence.

Focusing on the interplay between imagery and visionary experience, this collection of essays explores cultural practices primarily in poetry, while also delving into painting, sculpture, and song. It examines the evolution of the image throughout history, particularly in relation to Imagism, modernism, and surrealism. Central themes include the concepts of interiority and exteriority, analyzing how images manifest and are reinterpreted mentally. Additionally, it introduces insights from notable Sufi scholar Henry Corbin, enriching the discussion of the image's significance.

Through exquisitely crafted prose poems, Melissa Kwasny explores the intricate relationship between humanity and the natural world in her fourth collection. The work addresses urgent questions about existence and ecological awareness, blending vivid imagery to create a surreal and poignant vision. Themes of mortality, temporality, and eternity resonate throughout, challenging readers to reflect on their connection to the world amidst distractions. Kwasny's exploration of the senses invites contemplation on the intersection of reality and dreams, positioning her as a significant voice in contemporary poetry.

Exploring the connection between inner and outer worlds, Kwasny delves into how inherited traditions—ranging from indigenous culture and mythology to modernism and postmodernism—shape everyday experiences. Inspired by the ideas of Novalis and early German Romanticism, the work examines the tangible and intangible influences of these diverse cultural legacies on contemporary life.

These thirty-seven poems are eccentric in the true meaning of the word off-center. Their titles, bearing the names of weeds, flowers, herbs, trees, are merely points of departure. How hard can it be," the poet asks, "to lie down in the green / mussed bed of the senses... In clover." Whether it's clover or rue, aspen or moss, the reader is invited into that rumpled but rich bed." --Maxine Kumin