IN THE EVENING, poetry by William Reichard
Publication Date: September 15, 2024
Paperback, 94 pages
ISBN: 978-1-956782-82-0
At the close of his title poem, William Reichard declares that he will “let silence speak in my stead” – which in this case mean giving voice to the silent dead (such as those lost in two politicized pandemics), or stepping aside for others to be heard, like his “American Saints” mostly martyrs to homophobia, or his heart taking the form of birds. He derives his themes of evening and silence from the Austrian poet Georg Trakl, and this collection includes a cycle of “mistranslations” in dialog with Trakl’s verse. In some respects less personal than Reichard’s previous collections (“I was not going to say anything / about love” – but of course he does, being “stupid in love”), it nevertheless is infused with hope of being “sustained / by love,” opening with possibility, and offering these lines in remembrance of another poet, Jonathan Williams: “history is made of old men, / fragile, human, full of flaws and wonder and lust, / before time’s half-truths transforms them, and they / turn into the impossibly perfect heroes we praise.”
Praise for William Reichard & In the Evening
A modern-day augur, William Reichard pays attention: to the skies, to passing seasons, to the rhythms and patterns of life. His graceful poems travel through time and subjectivities, allowing us to notice the world as deeply as he does.
— Kenny Fries, award-winning author of In the Province of the Gods & In the Gardens of Japan
It is quiet, the evening William Reichard tenders us here: “A road emerges / from the fog, / and we cannot / see its end.” For all his understated, pitch-perfect description, though, Reichard’s real project is inclusion. What one of his poems catches God doing, Reichard himself is doing throughout this book: “inviting his people to dance / in celebration of their lives, in the glory of the ordinary.”
—H. L. Hix, author of Moral Tales, The Gospel, & others
About the Author
William Reichard is a writer, editor, and educator. In the Evening is his eighth collection of poetry. Previous Broadstone titles are Two Men Rowing Madly Toward Infinity and Our Delicate Barricades Downed. Reichard lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Publication Date: September 15, 2024
Paperback, 94 pages
ISBN: 978-1-956782-82-0
At the close of his title poem, William Reichard declares that he will “let silence speak in my stead” – which in this case mean giving voice to the silent dead (such as those lost in two politicized pandemics), or stepping aside for others to be heard, like his “American Saints” mostly martyrs to homophobia, or his heart taking the form of birds. He derives his themes of evening and silence from the Austrian poet Georg Trakl, and this collection includes a cycle of “mistranslations” in dialog with Trakl’s verse. In some respects less personal than Reichard’s previous collections (“I was not going to say anything / about love” – but of course he does, being “stupid in love”), it nevertheless is infused with hope of being “sustained / by love,” opening with possibility, and offering these lines in remembrance of another poet, Jonathan Williams: “history is made of old men, / fragile, human, full of flaws and wonder and lust, / before time’s half-truths transforms them, and they / turn into the impossibly perfect heroes we praise.”
Praise for William Reichard & In the Evening
A modern-day augur, William Reichard pays attention: to the skies, to passing seasons, to the rhythms and patterns of life. His graceful poems travel through time and subjectivities, allowing us to notice the world as deeply as he does.
— Kenny Fries, award-winning author of In the Province of the Gods & In the Gardens of Japan
It is quiet, the evening William Reichard tenders us here: “A road emerges / from the fog, / and we cannot / see its end.” For all his understated, pitch-perfect description, though, Reichard’s real project is inclusion. What one of his poems catches God doing, Reichard himself is doing throughout this book: “inviting his people to dance / in celebration of their lives, in the glory of the ordinary.”
—H. L. Hix, author of Moral Tales, The Gospel, & others
About the Author
William Reichard is a writer, editor, and educator. In the Evening is his eighth collection of poetry. Previous Broadstone titles are Two Men Rowing Madly Toward Infinity and Our Delicate Barricades Downed. Reichard lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Publication Date: September 15, 2024
Paperback, 94 pages
ISBN: 978-1-956782-82-0
At the close of his title poem, William Reichard declares that he will “let silence speak in my stead” – which in this case mean giving voice to the silent dead (such as those lost in two politicized pandemics), or stepping aside for others to be heard, like his “American Saints” mostly martyrs to homophobia, or his heart taking the form of birds. He derives his themes of evening and silence from the Austrian poet Georg Trakl, and this collection includes a cycle of “mistranslations” in dialog with Trakl’s verse. In some respects less personal than Reichard’s previous collections (“I was not going to say anything / about love” – but of course he does, being “stupid in love”), it nevertheless is infused with hope of being “sustained / by love,” opening with possibility, and offering these lines in remembrance of another poet, Jonathan Williams: “history is made of old men, / fragile, human, full of flaws and wonder and lust, / before time’s half-truths transforms them, and they / turn into the impossibly perfect heroes we praise.”
Praise for William Reichard & In the Evening
A modern-day augur, William Reichard pays attention: to the skies, to passing seasons, to the rhythms and patterns of life. His graceful poems travel through time and subjectivities, allowing us to notice the world as deeply as he does.
— Kenny Fries, award-winning author of In the Province of the Gods & In the Gardens of Japan
It is quiet, the evening William Reichard tenders us here: “A road emerges / from the fog, / and we cannot / see its end.” For all his understated, pitch-perfect description, though, Reichard’s real project is inclusion. What one of his poems catches God doing, Reichard himself is doing throughout this book: “inviting his people to dance / in celebration of their lives, in the glory of the ordinary.”
—H. L. Hix, author of Moral Tales, The Gospel, & others
About the Author
William Reichard is a writer, editor, and educator. In the Evening is his eighth collection of poetry. Previous Broadstone titles are Two Men Rowing Madly Toward Infinity and Our Delicate Barricades Downed. Reichard lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota.