Swan Bones

by Bethany Bowman

Swan Bones is a book about small towns and the people who inhabit them. Its poems follow the author from the hills of the Mohawk Valley to the cornfields of East Central Indiana, where she’s lived for nearly a decade. They deal in everyday ironies, and it is in these spaces that Bowman crafts a unique vision defined by her stark honesty, distinctive lyricism, and persistent hope. She proffers quartz crystals despite layoffs; moonflowers, which only open when night falls. The poems practice a hard faith, and invite us to do the same.

Genres: Poetry

104 pages, Paperback

Published June 20, 2018

Reviews

[Stephen Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Swan Bones, by Bethany Bowman, is a lovely, thoughtful book of modern poetry. It is simultaneously a reflection on small town living, a plaintive exploration of the bittersweet feelings of leaving one place and moving to another, and a thoughtful comparison of both faith’s power and its awkward praxis. This book manages to simultaneously explore the vicissitudes of life—moving, leaving, starting afresh—while still maintaining a gentle, comforting sense of place. It is well-written, restorative, and reminiscent of my own struggles and joys as I moved from my hometown to upstate New York, except it manages to distill all of it in words I never was able to find for myself...

Full Review: https://stephenjosephc.com/2018/08/13...

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

These stunning poems see beneath the surface of small town life. Bowman finds the truth in bee hives and buzzards, baptisms and bars, and the results are often surprising and always beautiful. I will read this collection again and again.