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eBook Edition
- 978-1-5255-0248-4
- epub, mobi, pdf files
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Paperback Edition
- 978-1-5255-0247-7
- 5.5 x 8.5 inches
- Standard Color interior
- 192 pages
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Hardcover Edition
- 978-1-5255-0246-0
- 5.5 x 8.5 inches
- Standard Color interior
- 192 pages
- Keywords
- Greece,
- China,
- New York City,
- Travel journal,
- Mythology,
- Nature,
- Storytelling
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Murmurings
by
Howard Giskin
Living was not lost on us for the island’s millennia spoke, its nooks and crags murmuring… There are stories being whispered around us, if we but listen. Murmurings is a collection of poetry that draws upon the experiences of a lifetime spent traveling the world, reflecting on philosophy and the spirit, and listening deeply. The poems express singular moments in time—Walt Whitman strolling in Prospect Park, mulling over a line of poetry; Monet gazing upon swirls of water lilies with eyes made fuzzy by cataracts; an ancient nun, smiling and chanting through smoky drifts of incense. Rich in details, Murmurings will draw you in, fill your senses, and let you imagine yourself in another place … in another time.
"This work is a celebration of words and their powerful combinations. In its turns, it functions as an ode to sounds and meaning. Experimentation, even when describing something mundane, makes the text’s moments significant and exceptional. This is a collection whose works are healing, like medicine for life’s pains. Observations from Giskin’s travels cover different cultures, customs, and people; these insights are fascinating, intuitive, and inquisitive. The work is beautifully observant and generates curiosity in an engaging way. Lines find charm even in the ugly. Musings on individual fragility and on major life questions are introspective and intriguing. Written with clarity, experimentation, and obvious joy, Murmurings is inspirational, full of tiny flashes of simple beauty. Sorrow and delight coexist in perfect harmony in this stunning collection, wherein Giskin makes meaning from the simplest moments of daily life." - Foreword Clarion Reviews --- The poet also subtly explores failing memory to properly re-create moments; his apartment in New York City had an elevator he "cannot recall," and to him, the most interesting gravestones at St. Paul's Chapel are those that are blank, "washed clean by seasons of rain and cold." Giskin connects this fleeting nature of memory to the immigrant experience, both through a grandmother who "could neither read nor write, / left Poland never again to see" and his own travels abroad, taking him to the Temple of Diana in Nîmes, France; the pyramids of Giza; and an earthquake in Greece.... Elegant, subdued poems that offer a calm reflection on memory. - Kirkus Reviews
Howard Giskin pulls from his experiences in nature, reflections from his worldwide travels, and studies in the arts, philosophy, and science to fuel his writing. Howard’s preferred style honors the open form of the essay freeing the writer to see where their writing takes them, creating surprises for the writer and reader alike. Howard’s previous books include Arcade of Memory (2019), Murmurings (2017), An Introduction to Chinese Culture through the Family (2001), and Chinese Folktales (1997). Howard and his wife, Vicki, live in the Philippines, along with their two cats.
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- Howard Giskin
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