Wild Sweet Notes II: More Great Poetry From West Virginia

by Ace Boggess (Editor)

Publishers Place is very excited to announce the publication of WILD SWEET NOTES MORE GREAT POETRY FROM WEST VIRGINIA, the second in a two-part set of anthologies of notable West Virginia poets. WILD SWEET NOTES II follows WILD SWEET FIFTY YEARS OF WEST VIRGINIA POETRY, 1950-1999, published in 2000, representing 50 years of West Virginia poetry from 1950 through 1999. The first volume was placed in all West Virginia public libraries and secondary schools. It has been used as a text in numerous poetry, creative writing, and Appalachian studies courses at colleges and universities. WILD SWEET NOTES II will feature 60 poets not included in the first book and approximately 200 poems, and we expect this book will be equally as successful in its representation of West Virginia's literary talent. From Colleen Anderson, WV poet, author of THE NEW WEST VIRGINIA ONE-DAY TRIP The image of a garden appears again and again in Wild Sweet Notes II, and it is a fitting symbol for this second volume of poems from West Virginia writers. Here is a whole new season of verse, varied and bountiful and nourishing. From the haunting clarity of Tom Andrews to the lush and layered voice of Mary Moore, from the delicious story-spilling poems of John Hoppenthaler to Trent Busch¹s dead-on metaphors to Martin Lammon's slow-burning passion, Wild Sweet Notes II is full of work that will delight and reward readers. Rita Mae Reese tells small and terrifying truths. Bill King turns a morning walk into an epiphany. Honor J. McCain burnishes the surfaces of everyday words with a sense of history. I doubt that any reader, no matter how familiar with West Virginia writers, will fail to find some new and arresting voices in this anthology.

Genres: Poetry

234 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Ace Boggess' writing has appeared in Michigan Quarterly Review, Harvard Review, Mid-American Review, Atlanta Review, RATTLE, River Styx, Southern Humanities Review, J Journal, North Dakota Quarterly, and many other journals. He won the Robert Bausch Fiction Award and a fellowship from the West Virginia Commission on the Arts. He also spent five years in a West Virginia prison. He lives in Charleston, West Virginia, where he writes and tries to stay out of trouble.

Reviews

[Marne Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I celebrated the fifth anniversary of my move to West Virginia recently, and I decided I'd better accept the fact that, by anyone's estimation, I'm now a West Virginia writer. I found this book, which I'd somehow never heard of before, while browsing through my public library's catalog. Even though it was published in 2005, I figured it wasn't really that long ago, and maybe I would tap into some latent network of West Virginia poets, just simmering below the surface and waiting for me to find them. Well, that's not exactly what happened. It turns out that 2005 really was a long time ago! Many of the writers in this volume are simply untraceable. Others that I was able to locate have died, moved out of state, or given up poetry altogether. It turns out that most of the people in this volume who can still be considered West Virginia poets were already known to me. This made me realize that I already have more knowledge of the playing field than I thought.

Although I didn't really get what I'd hoped for out of it, I don't regret reading this book at all. Like most regional poetry anthologies, there is a wide variety of poetic styles represented here. Some were more in my comfort zone than others, but I found all of the included poems to be well-written and worth reading. Likewise, it reinforced my idea of West Virginia as a culturally diverse state with several distinct regions. (Not to say that all the writing in this volume is regionally focused. Far from it!)

Now I'm wondering if there will ever be a Wild Sweet Notes III. I hope there is, if only so I can be included!

[Katy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A second collection by selected WV poets. I really liked the poetry. I even found a couple poems written by a sensitive soul of a college friend--cool! :D

I'd recommend this for those who enjoy poetry or are interested in Appalachian writers and poets.