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Pulling Words
With Pulling Words, a collection that simply and honestly showcases the drama and quietude of life, poet Nicholas Trandahl displays written snapshots of the world he has explored and observed. He escorts readers from his childhood in rural Virginia to his troubled time as a deployed soldier in the Middle East, and from the empty beauty of Wyoming to the quaint charm of Martha’s Vineyard.
- GenresPoetry
138 pages, Paperback
Published April 26, 2017
4 people are currently reading
135 people want to read
About the author
Nicholas Trandahl
16 books90 followersNicholas Trandahl is a poet, journalist, outdoorsman, and U. S. Army veteran. He lives in Wyoming with his wife and daughters. He has had four poetry collections and a novel published. His most recent poetry collection is Mountain Song.
Trandahl’s poetry collection Bravery was the recipient of the 2019 Wyoming Writers Milestone Award, and his poem “Francis and Sistani” was nominated for the 2021 Pushcart Prize. His poems have been published or are forthcoming in various literary journals, including but not limited to the James Dickey Review, Sky Island Journal, High Plains Register, The Dewdrop, Duck Head Journal, Resurrection Magazine, Dreich Magazine, Voices de la Luna, Deep Wild Journal, Wild Roof Journal, Twenty Bellows, and anthologies from Middle Creek Publishing, Wee Sparrow Poetry Press, and the New York Quarterly.
Additionally, Trandahl serves as the Chairman of the annual Eugene V. Shea National Poetry Contest and is the poetry editor for the literary journal The Dewdrop.
Trandahl’s poetry collection Bravery was the recipient of the 2019 Wyoming Writers Milestone Award, and his poem “Francis and Sistani” was nominated for the 2021 Pushcart Prize. His poems have been published or are forthcoming in various literary journals, including but not limited to the James Dickey Review, Sky Island Journal, High Plains Register, The Dewdrop, Duck Head Journal, Resurrection Magazine, Dreich Magazine, Voices de la Luna, Deep Wild Journal, Wild Roof Journal, Twenty Bellows, and anthologies from Middle Creek Publishing, Wee Sparrow Poetry Press, and the New York Quarterly.
Additionally, Trandahl serves as the Chairman of the annual Eugene V. Shea National Poetry Contest and is the poetry editor for the literary journal The Dewdrop.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
June 16, 2017
One of the best volumes of poetry I've read in a long while. Nicholas is a master at making a heart remember how to feel. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up.
July 8, 2017
Nicholas Trandahl is one of my favorite contemporary poetic voices. I have read his poetry books before and every time I am amazed at the simple brilliance. His approach is methodical, reflective, environmental and brutally honest. Trandahl's new poetry book published by Winter Goose is his best yet. He captures, nature, war, peace, love and family life in such divine poems that reflect nature and the beauty of everyday life. He finds the extraordinary in the ordinary and this is what makes Nicholas Trandahl a true poet. His ability to see thunder, rain, war zones through his quiet eyes. He is a peaceful man, and his beautiful soul is pulling words out of the universe with exquisite gestures. A must read for readers who adore Mary Oliver and Jim Harrison, this genre of poetry brings reminds me why I love poetry so much. To leave you with an excerpt, from the poem "Belgium"
The swell of time
is illuminated with
terrible moments-
more being born
each golden morning.
- Nicholas Trandahl
The swell of time
is illuminated with
terrible moments-
more being born
each golden morning.
- Nicholas Trandahl
April 28, 2017
I've followed Nick's poetic journey from the beginning and liked his use of nature to stick a lens into the bigger picture of life's greatest mysteries and moments: love, being in love, marriage, pregnancy, and reminiscing childhood truths and young adult experiences that led to make the man.
Thankfully, I found out he was releasing a poetry collection just in time and rushed into the party even if I missed the hor d'oeuvres. What follows is my take of the collection at large and some of my favorite quotes. Yet, as a poet myself, I know that reading poetry takes a few tries before the jigsaw pieces complete the puzzle :
Trandahl takes the reader down memory lane with poems about his childhood, his time serving in the Middle East, and a poem that feels like a fly on the wall during a family vacation. Nature and outdoorsy imagery is heavily used due to the poet's love and adoration for the outdoors.
For complete review, please visit thesmartcookiephiles.wordpress.com
Thankfully, I found out he was releasing a poetry collection just in time and rushed into the party even if I missed the hor d'oeuvres. What follows is my take of the collection at large and some of my favorite quotes. Yet, as a poet myself, I know that reading poetry takes a few tries before the jigsaw pieces complete the puzzle :
Trandahl takes the reader down memory lane with poems about his childhood, his time serving in the Middle East, and a poem that feels like a fly on the wall during a family vacation. Nature and outdoorsy imagery is heavily used due to the poet's love and adoration for the outdoors.
For complete review, please visit thesmartcookiephiles.wordpress.com
November 7, 2017
“Maybe poets are not liars,” suggests Nicholas Trandahl in his latest collection Pulling Words. And what follows, is a volume of honest, deftly-crafted verse. Trandahl shows that the poet can be equally a father, a soldier, a nature enthusiast, and a wordsmith. His poems range from memories of small town life in “The House up on Pine Street” to his experiences as a soldier in “The Box Made of Bone.” Because of his unpretentious tone and awareness of nature, his work brings to mind Raymond Carver and Gary Snyder. But more important, these poems are organic and relatable to readers who normally shun poetry. Pulling Words is a solid collection that is enjoyable without being overly academic. So when it is suggested to me, “Maybe poets are not liars?” I have to answer that this one is not. False words never have this much conviction.
March 26, 2018
“Pulling Words” is much more than a collection of memories
“Pulling Words” is much more than a collection of memories. It’s a poet’s nostalgia for his childhood days, first kisses, visiting places. Mental journeys to wherever he “left pieces” of his soul. As he “tastes” those memories again, you find yourself accompanying him during his walks in the woods, and you get to know this “avid outdoorsman” Nicolas Trandahl, better and better as he reveals to the reader his musings, unfolding his heart and soul.
The poet guides us through the ethereal scenery of nature to the details of rough reality, and emotions altering continuously in this book. Seasons pass, years too and bitter-sweet reminders are hiding always at the next corner, inspiring his writing.
His everyday life pictured through poetry, in a journal style, is a lesson of how valuable simple details are, such as the “Antique light from an old lamp passing through a glass of bourbon”.
Colors, shapes, scents waking up his senses and ours, “Pulling words” out of his soul and into ours, the poet embraces life, and while reading this book, we do embrace life too.
“Pulling Words” is much more than a collection of memories. It’s a poet’s nostalgia for his childhood days, first kisses, visiting places. Mental journeys to wherever he “left pieces” of his soul. As he “tastes” those memories again, you find yourself accompanying him during his walks in the woods, and you get to know this “avid outdoorsman” Nicolas Trandahl, better and better as he reveals to the reader his musings, unfolding his heart and soul.
The poet guides us through the ethereal scenery of nature to the details of rough reality, and emotions altering continuously in this book. Seasons pass, years too and bitter-sweet reminders are hiding always at the next corner, inspiring his writing.
His everyday life pictured through poetry, in a journal style, is a lesson of how valuable simple details are, such as the “Antique light from an old lamp passing through a glass of bourbon”.
Colors, shapes, scents waking up his senses and ours, “Pulling words” out of his soul and into ours, the poet embraces life, and while reading this book, we do embrace life too.
March 30, 2018
I don't even know where to start! You can learn so much from reading Trandahl's poetry about perfecting your own craft. His poems are subtle, so they don't immediately scream to you this is a love poem, or like in poem The Lengths we All Go writing about invisible mental wounds, or in Belgium, which again is not overtly referred to, but is a depiction of terrorism, 'love is more solid
than anything else -
more eternal
It will never
be broken into dust
by a wielder of terror,'
The execution of his lines, and the words he chooses, are so right. This book hooks you in. It brings the outside into the insides of this book, from childhood, to his time as a soldier, and marriage, and fatherhood. There are lines 'that building is a bar now
one of many that balance out
the number of churches in town,' for example you would be forgiven for missing the meaning, the full weight of the words because the poems are so multi layered, they tell a complete story, and there are emotions in every sentence. The influences, which Trandahl dedicates some of his poems to, (Tolstoy, Hemingway, etc.) seem to make an impression on the writing too.
I was blown away by Pulling Words, and I was expecting something marvellous to begin with. My initial review read something like ggdhdkkaaaalllnfeeencbxxxxx because Trandahl writes so well, and the writing seems like something from another era too. It seems like Trandahl has an old soul, like me.
than anything else -
more eternal
It will never
be broken into dust
by a wielder of terror,'
The execution of his lines, and the words he chooses, are so right. This book hooks you in. It brings the outside into the insides of this book, from childhood, to his time as a soldier, and marriage, and fatherhood. There are lines 'that building is a bar now
one of many that balance out
the number of churches in town,' for example you would be forgiven for missing the meaning, the full weight of the words because the poems are so multi layered, they tell a complete story, and there are emotions in every sentence. The influences, which Trandahl dedicates some of his poems to, (Tolstoy, Hemingway, etc.) seem to make an impression on the writing too.
I was blown away by Pulling Words, and I was expecting something marvellous to begin with. My initial review read something like ggdhdkkaaaalllnfeeencbxxxxx because Trandahl writes so well, and the writing seems like something from another era too. It seems like Trandahl has an old soul, like me.
March 17, 2019
This collection makes me think of home cooked meals - real meat and potato type of stuff. Comforting and warm. Nostalgic.
Trandahl's work brings all your senses into play until you can feel and taste and smell every moment that you're reading about, as if you were right there beside him.
Heavily influenced by nature and all things outdoors, these poems feel like a deep breath of fresh, mountain air. This was the first collection that I've read by Trandahl, but I will be picking up more.
My favorite poems in this collection were: Evening Calling, Cure From Kentucky, Patriarch, The Shades of the Leaves, A Frosty Morning, The Russians, and Andromeda.
Trandahl's work brings all your senses into play until you can feel and taste and smell every moment that you're reading about, as if you were right there beside him.
Heavily influenced by nature and all things outdoors, these poems feel like a deep breath of fresh, mountain air. This was the first collection that I've read by Trandahl, but I will be picking up more.
My favorite poems in this collection were: Evening Calling, Cure From Kentucky, Patriarch, The Shades of the Leaves, A Frosty Morning, The Russians, and Andromeda.
October 6, 2020
The nostalgia. The imagery. The way Trandahl takes you from your couch to where he is — both physically and emotionally — it’s unmatched. Pure raw emotion from cover to cover, this is the type of collection you can pick up at any time and open to any page, and you’ll be happy you did.
January 5, 2020
The author's use of sensory imagery is beautiful and brings you up close. It reminds me of Sam Beam's voice in Mumford and Sons - like a calm, serene and brutally honest yearning for the sweetness of sitting with bare feet beneath a tree in autumn watching your children play in the leaves. His odes to talented writers such as Tolstoy, Hemingway and Raymond Carver made his meanderings all the more meaningful. Wonderful, centering experience. Very talented poet.
March 8, 2025
This forever remains one of my favorite books.
March 16, 2018
Full of colour
Nicholas has a love of nature and he has a way of bringing the descriptions to life on the page. The imagery is rich and often feels nostalgic.
Nicholas' poetic style is relaxing and beautifully calming.
Nicholas has a love of nature and he has a way of bringing the descriptions to life on the page. The imagery is rich and often feels nostalgic.
Nicholas' poetic style is relaxing and beautifully calming.
December 31, 2018
His poetry is really down to earth, feels like home.
March 27, 2018
“Pulling Words” by Nicholas Trandahl is an aesthetic and artistic manifesto revealing not only the poet’s attitude to life and living but also his poetic talent.
The collection honestly showcases the quiet and blissful moments as well as the drama and pain in life. The poet is a collector of experiences and in a very friendly manner the reader is invited to join and share these experiences through the poems: from the poet’s childhood in rural Virginia to his troubled time as a deployed soldier in the Middle East; from the empty beauty of Wyoming to the quaint charm of Martha’s Vineyard.
Mr. Trandahl’s poems impress as very personal and sincere on the one hand but on the other hand they have a philosophic air, somehow discovering goodness in everything, which makes them relatable through different cultures. Hence probably the association another reviewer makes with Thoreau and transcendentalism with which I would agree.
I cannot choose a favourite poem, as I loved them all, but however, I would like to share a brief quote from “Maybe poets are not liars” as it carries a message from the poet directly to his readership:
“But maybe poets are not
liars.
Maybe we only want
to show you everything
all around you,
even the things that we,
ourselves,
have never seen.”
Last year I discovered Nicholas Trandahl’s poetry entirely by chance on Twitter and haven’t stopped enjoying every single poem he posts. I absolutely enjoyed reading his book “Pulling Words”.
Tomorrow Mr. Trandahl is about to release his next poetry book – “THINK OF ME”. I am absolutely curious what words he has pulled from aether this time and can’t wait to read it!
The collection honestly showcases the quiet and blissful moments as well as the drama and pain in life. The poet is a collector of experiences and in a very friendly manner the reader is invited to join and share these experiences through the poems: from the poet’s childhood in rural Virginia to his troubled time as a deployed soldier in the Middle East; from the empty beauty of Wyoming to the quaint charm of Martha’s Vineyard.
Mr. Trandahl’s poems impress as very personal and sincere on the one hand but on the other hand they have a philosophic air, somehow discovering goodness in everything, which makes them relatable through different cultures. Hence probably the association another reviewer makes with Thoreau and transcendentalism with which I would agree.
I cannot choose a favourite poem, as I loved them all, but however, I would like to share a brief quote from “Maybe poets are not liars” as it carries a message from the poet directly to his readership:
“But maybe poets are not
liars.
Maybe we only want
to show you everything
all around you,
even the things that we,
ourselves,
have never seen.”
Last year I discovered Nicholas Trandahl’s poetry entirely by chance on Twitter and haven’t stopped enjoying every single poem he posts. I absolutely enjoyed reading his book “Pulling Words”.
Tomorrow Mr. Trandahl is about to release his next poetry book – “THINK OF ME”. I am absolutely curious what words he has pulled from aether this time and can’t wait to read it!
December 31, 2017
Wonderfully personal collection of poems that touched on everything from a young family to time spent abroad in the military. Beautiful painted visuals of landscapes both familiar and foreign; I'm looking forward to more work from this author!
February 7, 2021
An absolutely beautiful collection that took my breath away! When reading Trandahl’s words I feel like I’m along for the hike in a beautiful forest.
December 22, 2021
One of the best definitions of poetry that I have ever read is from William Wordsworth. He describes poetry as “the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings” that take “their origin from emotion recollected in tranquility”. Trandahl’s poetry takes its origin and finds tranquility in nature. The spontaneity comes in the form of epiphanies. Nearly every poem in this collection contains an epiphany or spiritual awakening—a shift in perspective—from inward to outward, perception to emotion, and the poems feel Joycean in this respect. Nature and wilderness are sacred in this book. The natural world is a two way mirror through which Trandahl looks outward and inward, with equally precise and beautiful detail. Nature is his solace; its beauty is tastefully, skillfully and honestly described, and it inspires tender moments of reflection. I recommend this book to everyone, whether you are an avid reader of poetry or you have never opened a book before. Let this be your first book of poetry, or another to add to your self.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews