Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger

School for Dark Thoughts by Charles Simic (1978) Charles Seluzicki

I went by appointment to the Wilson Special Collections Library at UNC Chapel Hill to see a copy in the Rare Books Collection.

Hand printed and hand bound, signed - #84 of 235 copies.  First sheet is not part of the binding (without it, the copy would be incomplete).

Interesting page layout by the printer – no isolation of poems, once a poem ends, the next starts on the same page.  A set number of lines per page printed - if a poem or stanza hits the line limit, the next line is on the next page - a little jarring at times.

Simic tends to use quatrains but not always.  Often, he capitalizes each line.  But in some poems, only the first word of a sentence or stanza is capitalized.

The original copy sold for $22.50 (penciled on a blank page).  Now some of the 235 copies sell for over $150.00.

The pamphlet includes eight poems:

1. The Stream
2. School for Dark Thoughts (title poem)
3. The Great Anonymous Eye and Ear
4. Window Washer
5. The Guest (longest poem – 3 pages)
6. Note Slipped Under a Door
7. Peaceful Kingdom
8. Whispers In the Next Room

Spring & All by William Carlos Williams (1923) Contact Publishing

Williams’ manifesto of the imagination.  Two of his best-known poems; “Spring and All” and “The Red Wheelbarrow” appeared first in this volume.  He alternates between an examination of how the imagination works in prose and poetry, then shows us an example in poetry.

His musings on the work on the imagination and letting the mind produce are inspiring and can be read over and over with benefits for a writer in each reading.

The Hill We Climb by Amanda Gorman (1921) Viking Books

The words we needed to hear.  Ms. Gorman will be a significant contributor to American Poetry, with her own words, and the poets she inspires.  The United States and the world is a better place because of her poems and her actions.

She has another book coming out: Call Us What We Carry - I'm waiting for my copy.

Late Wife by Claudia Emerson (2005) Louisiana State University Press 

Emerson explores the life she shared with a husband until the marriage failed, then the freedom of solitude during her recovery from that set of emotions, then the unexpected joy found with a new husband who was a widower.

Hate That Cat by Sharon Creech (1972) HarperCollins

The sequel to Love That Dog, the poor cat takes the brunt of everything bad that happened to the dog.  Humorous and fast paced poems will bring laughter and tears to your eyes.