A Thousand Little Things: One-line Poems to Spark a Thought

by Ty Gardner, Shelly Gardner (Illustrator)

"... #204. A velvet wilderness, aching like an avalanche to spill over and smolder you in crimson.

#230. The warmth of knowing arms.

#658. The space between the lines where rainstorm reveries take place and kisses spark electric..."

Containing 1,000 monostich or "one-line poems," A Thousand Little Things: One-line Poems to Spark a Thought careens through landscapes of captivating observations, backdrops of romance and intrigue, proposals of the theoretical, and a host of many other illuminating poetic considerations that will ignite the senses and enliven the imagination for years to come.

With recurring themes in love, loss, the intimate pursuit of a spiritual self, and understanding how time and experience help guide our humanity, readers of Ty's works have come to enjoy an often deeply reflective tone at the heart of his poetry, encouraging them to ponder the bigness of the world around them through the wonderment of words.

112 pages, Paperback

Published January 15, 2021

About the author

A lifelong enthusiast of all forms of poetry, Ty has written creatively from the time he was a child. He is the author of a dozen poetry books and a co-author of a poetic anthology, Midnight With Words: Late Night Conversations in Poetry, along with eleven wonderfully gifted writers from across the globe.

Although much of his work is philosophical, grappling with such weighty ideas as mortality, loss, reflecting the past, and looking ahead to what unknowns the future holds, Ty's sense of wonder and unwavering admiration of simple curiosities are always similarly present in each of his poetic efforts, lovingly crafted with the hope that his words will impart an inspired thought and spark a creativity in others.

When he's not musing or waxing poetic, Ty can be found exploring the wonderment of his newfound home in Northwest Arkansas with his family.

Reviews

[Griffin]

"A marvel of moonbeam beauty, umber-eyed and lithe as a willow tree whip crack."

I don't read poetry often—but this book my friend gifted me invoked a lot of feelings and memories that I wasn't expecting to.

"Smiling at life eyes and sobbing at death breath."

This collection has a mixture of light-hearted, thought-provoking and deep one-line poems. They created space for self-reflection and observances of other experiences.

"Parents who know better but forget themselves."

I can see myself rereading or referencing this collection while journaling. This is a nice dose of artistry.

[Antonia Wang]

This book is a collage of tiny snapshots into the literary wonder that is Ty Garder's mind. Readers of his poetry will recognize his fondness for wordplay and his ability to transport us to unexpected places, through nostalgic highways and layered glances at the here and now. It would be easy to ponder just one of these gems for hours, but Ty offers us 1,000 of them to peruse and delve. A great primer for his lengthier and equally potent poetry!

[Hullabaloo22]

What a great collection this is! One thousand one-line poems that work well as that, but they stick there and I at least found myself thinking about each one. This makes this a perfect poetry prompt book too.
Definitely one that I will return to again and again. Thank you, Mr Gardner!

[Taylor G]

Some of the poems are really thought provoking, Some I don't understand, and others are straight forward I enjoyed them.