Just a Spit Down the Road

Carol Parris Krauss’s poems in Just a Spit Down the Road never fail to surprise, unveiling the familiar to regale what she finds beneath, no matter how strange and counter, whether the protective and petticoated sentry spirit of her charming haibun “The Ruts of Highway 58” or her cloud-climbing cat who “sharpens her claws on the altostratus” and is “careful not to shred the layers” [causing] “her to slip through the ice crystals” but at the end, “disturbing the mundane.” Disturb the mundane is what Krauss does in these fascinating poems full of twists and turns of language, perspective, and form as she unfolds landscapes, characters and stories with her sharp observances informed by history, science, and “a world littered with / all the pebbles her pockets can not hold.” —Suzanne Underwood Rhodes, author of Flying Yellow and Hungry Foxes In the titular poem of this intriguing first collection, Carol Parris Krauss is able to create fantastic leaps between what a female student does and does not know—experiences and naiveté clashing ultimately in country versus city, Tidewater, Virginia against Washington, DC—told through the perspective of a teacher. Rife with rich images drawn from careful observation, oftentimes invoking the rigid symbolism of stone, Krauss’s poems sing in contradiction of what it means to be a Southern woman, filled with a longing to find a better way forward, unafraid to look back at a violent past. Just a Spit Down the Road is a necessary collection in recognizing the needed changing landscape of the American South, and in teaching readers the contradiction of emotion that accompanies this. —Tara A. Elliott, Poet and President of the Eastern Shore Writers Association You’ll fall head over heels with Carol Parris Krauss’s wide-ranging collection Just a Spit Down the Road. Diving into personal memories, past journeys, fragmented with vivid flashbacks, Krauss writes with evocative description and imagist precision. Cloud-climbing cats, caves spoiled by tourist groups, sugar-ants doing the conga find their place alongside more nostalgic memories. A distinctive and inspiring read that is sure to find a wide readership. —Matthew M. C. Smith, writer and editor ofBlack Bough poetry
ASIN: 1639800387
VSKU: 56JPTJ0012DG_ns
Condition: Good
Author/Artist:Krauss, Carol Parris
Binding: Paperback
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Condition Notes: Pages can have notes highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. May have varying covers. Fast Shipping - Mailed in plastic mailer!