{"product_id":"elephants-and-butterflies","title":"Elephants and Butterflies","description":"\u003cp\u003eBoth wild and calm, boisterous and quiet, the poems in \u003cem\u003eElephants \u0026amp; Butterflies\u003c\/em\u003e employ Alan Michael Parker's trademark surprise, song, and startling metaphor while allowing the ideas to simmer just below the surface of the lyric. These poems accomplish the difficult task of being accessible while still pursuing complex philosophical and personal knowledge. Elephants \u0026amp; Butterflies includes, among other poems, a series of seven “free verse sonnets,” entitled “A Peal of Sonnets,” each named for a day of the week. As a series, the poems act as a “peal”: like the bells rung in cathedrals, in the “ringing of the changes,” the seven poems interrelate, their shared musical sonorities dynamic. Elsewhere in Elephants \u0026amp; Butterflies, Alan Michael Parker tests formal and free verse conventions, utilizing prose poem, elegy, ode, and rhyme. Combining the familiarity of formal elements with Alan Michael Parker's unique voice and vision, Elephants \u0026amp; Butterflies will surprise and gratify readers with each turn. \"The straightforward poems of Parker's fifth collection reach for opposing poles, combining the sublime and the everyday, the lumbering elephant and the etheral butterfly...anchoring his poems with poignant ironies and vivid images...always, Parker writes with great sincerity.\"--Publishers Weekly \"Overall…Elephants and Butterflies is carefully made and very accessible.  It can withstand multiple readings, and makes a compelling addition to Parker’s body of work.\"–New Madrid: A Journal of Contemporary Literature \"Parker does his work with a light touch and an inquisitive spirit; he sees and questions the odd angles and details that can make a common thought or experince matter in a new way.\" --Pleiades\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat Was He Saying and to Whom\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eWhat was he saying and to whom?\u003cbr\u003eWith a silver thermos he left the building;\u003cbr\u003eHe paused in the courtyard and turned. \u003cbr\u003eWhat was he saying and to whom? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe building at dawn not yet a building \u003cbr\u003ePaused the way all buildings do. \u003cbr\u003eWhat was he saying and to whom? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTime doesn't stop; time doesn't wait;\u003cbr\u003eTime has never moved. \u003cbr\u003eWhat was he saying and to whom? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf the dog had been sleeping \u003cbr\u003eShe would not have awakened, \u003cbr\u003eSo small was the moment to lose. \u003cbr\u003eWhat was he saying and to whom?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat was he saying and to whom? \u003cbr\u003eThe courtyard at dawn was the same \u003cbr\u003eAs the sky, the sky swept clean by the moon. \u003cbr\u003eWhat was he saying and to whom? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGood morning, good-bye, I love you, I'll try.\u003cbr\u003eWhat was he saying and to whom?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e© BOA Editions, Ltd 2008\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAvailable editions:\u003cbr\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr\u003ePrice: $16.00\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BOA Editions, Ltd.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":8418363525,"sku":"9781934414057","price":16.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0982\/0178\/products\/ELEPHANTS_AND_BUTTERFLIES.jpg?v=1527683216","url":"https:\/\/shop.boaeditions.org\/products\/elephants-and-butterflies","provider":"Boa Editions","version":"1.0","type":"link"}