Hi friends,
Many of you have likely seen this already, but my big news is that I have a new book of poems coming out next year. It will be called Continuing City, and it will be published by Bonfire Books.
I’m really excited about this one. It will have about fifty pages of original poems, along with the full text of my translation of The Voyage of Saint Brendan. There has been a great deal of interest in my translation of the Voyage, since I first posted about it here. If you’re not familiar with the story, it’s wild. An Irish monk (a real historical person and a Saint in the Eastern and Western churches) sails across the ocean searching for Paradise, and encounters many adventures along the way. He chats with angels disguised as birds, sails through Hell, and celebrates the Eucharist on the back of a sea monster.
And that’s just one piece of the book! The original poems extend on the theme, with poems about otherworldly voyages, oceans, floods, ancient mythology, and science fiction. I can’t wait to share it with you. See the announcement from Bonfire Books here.
Also, here’s a new poem, published in the latest issue of The Wheel. This one is part of the Arthurian cycle I’ve been working on. I was struck by the historical accounts of Arthur wearing an image of Mary on the battlefield, either on his armor or his shield. This poem was the result—a meditation on the nature of mercy and violence.
That’s all for today. Stay safe out there!
JKB