Death and the River (Salmon Poetry) [Paperback]

Ron Houchin (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1897648731 | ISBN-13: 978-1897648735 | Publication Date: February 23, 1998

In the Ohio valley of West Virginia and Ohio life is often defined by death. Tug boats shove coal and chemicals from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati and back again on the Ohio River, the third most polluted river in the U.S. The water is dark and poisonous, a kind of Styx. Here, a thing is known by its opposite. The river reflects cloudiness and blueness, but implies the earth through which it runs. In sunlight, the valley can be one of the most verdant areas of the country. These poems are shades of that light and darkness. They portray life flowing into death, and death ultimately coming to the river.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Even as I begin to write this review, I see the periods in the heading as seeds, an image given me by Ron Houchin in his poem 'Arcturean Tree Poets.' The whole collection is like that -- image after memorable image, metaphor after startling metaphor. This is a book I promise myself to read over and over and over." Barbara Smith, Grab-a-Nickel, vol.xxiv no.1, from Alderson-Broaddus College in Phillippi, West Virginia

"His poetry is distinctive, enjoyable, audacious." Ted McNulty, Poetry Ireland Review, Winter 1997 -- Ted McNulty, Poetry Ireland Review, Winter 1997

About the Author

Although this is his first collection, Ron Houchin's poetry is well known from its publication in dozens of journals worldwide - from Poetry Ireland Review to Poetry Australia. He has read his poetry in the Irish Writers' Centre, the Galway Arts Centre, The Hemingway Days Festival in Key West, Florida, and the James Wright Poetry Festival in Ohio. He has received grants and fellowships from such agencies as the Ohio Arts Council and Eastern Washington University. Ron Houchin lives in Southern Ohio, where he has taught literature and creative writing for the past twenty-six years.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Salmon Poetry (February 23, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1897648731
• ISBN-13: 978-1897648735
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,119,372 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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