Poet in High Street Park: Prose & Poetry for Modern Salem : Prose & Poetry for Modern Salem

by J.D. Scrimgeour

192 pages, Paperback

Published December 15, 2025

Reviews

[Jim DeFilippi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about more than a park with a basketball court and a playground. It’s about more than a town with a witches parade every Halloween and a House with Seven Gables.
It is the work of a poet who loves words, a citizen who loves his town, a professor who loves his students, a scholar who loves history, and man who loves humanity.
Read this book, luxuriate in its spunk and style. Expect beautiful lines of poetry and prose, well documented and delivered essays of history, and an admiring (while critical) look at the condition of our present-day society. The author’s humanity saturates every page of this book like an overflowing witch’s cauldron.
You’ll feel better.

[Phoebe Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

An honest and beautiful look into Salem from an insider’s prospective.

I especially enjoyed the section about education. For better or for worse, the themes J.D. explores transcend across many states, if not all, in the US, but I can only truly confirm and speak for the commonalities that align to the Texas education system and experience.

I’m very thankful I picked up a signed copy from Wicked Good Books while visiting Salem!

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book captures what Salem means to the author through poems, essays, and short stories.