ABOUT THE BOOK:
Poetry makes sense of life; it offers us truths; it brings us unimagined worlds; and it liberates our pain. In moments of great joy or sadness it is poetry which says the impossible, ensuring that the poignancy and loveliness of our humanity never passes into nothingness.
Great Art belongs to everyone; thus, it is crucial that we continue the dialogue between ourselves and the poems. It is in this dialogue that we witness the alchemy of poetry: the way it transmutes from a language form and feature to a universal elixir.
What is the point of living if there is no Art? And poetry is the most concentrated of all Art. It is the oldest of all literary forms. Poetry offers ritual and cadence: sacrifice and secrets. It is audacious and disturbing but always – and this applies to all great poetry – yours. Mine. Ours.
So, we read poetry to face the truth. To stand there and dig in, to stumble over words we don’t get, to find a phrase that flicks a light on in our memory, to cat-paw over and over an image that was laid down long ago. Most of all, we read poetry to remind ourselves of what really matters: to witness the soaring light that tears up our small lives.
Amazon link:
https://www.amazon.com/Alchemy-Poetry-Readers-Guide-Understanding/dp/1947381415/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=alchemy+of+poetry+elizabeth+guy&qid=1605469375&sr=8-1
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Dr Elizabeth Guy is a full-time writer and a part time tutor. She has been reading, writing and teaching Literature for the past 30 years. She was awarded a PhD from the University of Sydney (The Poetics of the Nation State) in 2001. Elizabeth has worked in Sydney, NSW at tertiary and secondary levels and Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. She has also studied and worked in countries such as Scotland, Fiji and Chile.
Elizabeth believes that Art belongs to all of us and that making it accessible is important. She was influenced by the books by Betty Churcher (the former director of the Australia’s National Gallery) where painting was explained by someone who loved Art and believed it was worthy of sharing with others. Elizabeth is passionate about the Arts. Indeed, she has always been driven to inspire students and to come into the conversation that poetry sets up between the reader and itself.
Elizabeth has written, Take Ink & Weep, a novel that is currently in production and is finalizing her next novel Abandoned by God. Both these historical fictions are set in Russia. The first novel explores the poetic lives of the great Silver Age poets during Russia’s engagement in World War 1; and the second, tells the story of some of the young assassins, active during the early days of the Russian Revolution, and who ultimately shaped the face of history.
Outside of writing, Elizabeth has travelled extensively throughout Russia, Europe and the USA. She has also completed a number of extensive historical walking tracks.
REVIEWERS/BLOGGERS: Email dreamingbigpublications@outlook.com to request your free electronic review copy. There is an author interview available upon request.
From the editor-in-chief: This would be a great classroom book for college level poetry professors to use in their curriculum!
Poetry makes sense of life; it offers us truths; it brings us unimagined worlds; and it liberates our pain. In moments of great joy or sadness it is poetry which says the impossible, ensuring that the poignancy and loveliness of our humanity never passes into nothingness.
Great Art belongs to everyone; thus, it is crucial that we continue the dialogue between ourselves and the poems. It is in this dialogue that we witness the alchemy of poetry: the way it transmutes from a language form and feature to a universal elixir.
What is the point of living if there is no Art? And poetry is the most concentrated of all Art. It is the oldest of all literary forms. Poetry offers ritual and cadence: sacrifice and secrets. It is audacious and disturbing but always – and this applies to all great poetry – yours. Mine. Ours.
So, we read poetry to face the truth. To stand there and dig in, to stumble over words we don’t get, to find a phrase that flicks a light on in our memory, to cat-paw over and over an image that was laid down long ago. Most of all, we read poetry to remind ourselves of what really matters: to witness the soaring light that tears up our small lives.
Amazon link:
https://www.amazon.com/Alchemy-Poetry-Readers-Guide-Understanding/dp/1947381415/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=alchemy+of+poetry+elizabeth+guy&qid=1605469375&sr=8-1
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Dr Elizabeth Guy is a full-time writer and a part time tutor. She has been reading, writing and teaching Literature for the past 30 years. She was awarded a PhD from the University of Sydney (The Poetics of the Nation State) in 2001. Elizabeth has worked in Sydney, NSW at tertiary and secondary levels and Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. She has also studied and worked in countries such as Scotland, Fiji and Chile.
Elizabeth believes that Art belongs to all of us and that making it accessible is important. She was influenced by the books by Betty Churcher (the former director of the Australia’s National Gallery) where painting was explained by someone who loved Art and believed it was worthy of sharing with others. Elizabeth is passionate about the Arts. Indeed, she has always been driven to inspire students and to come into the conversation that poetry sets up between the reader and itself.
Elizabeth has written, Take Ink & Weep, a novel that is currently in production and is finalizing her next novel Abandoned by God. Both these historical fictions are set in Russia. The first novel explores the poetic lives of the great Silver Age poets during Russia’s engagement in World War 1; and the second, tells the story of some of the young assassins, active during the early days of the Russian Revolution, and who ultimately shaped the face of history.
Outside of writing, Elizabeth has travelled extensively throughout Russia, Europe and the USA. She has also completed a number of extensive historical walking tracks.
REVIEWERS/BLOGGERS: Email dreamingbigpublications@outlook.com to request your free electronic review copy. There is an author interview available upon request.
From the editor-in-chief: This would be a great classroom book for college level poetry professors to use in their curriculum!
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