What do you think?
Rate this book
Pure Elysium
39 Page poetry chapbook. Perfect bound. Winner of the Second Biennial Chapbook Contest by Palettes & Quills. Judged by Dorianne Laux. Full color cover design by Peter Davis
Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
4 people want to read
About the author
Michael Meyerhofer
18 books109 followersI'm the author of the Dragonkin Trilogy, a dark/epic fantasy series. The first book, WYTCHFIRE, also won the Whirling Prize and was a Readers Choice nomination by Big Al's Books and Pals. The sequels, KNIGHTSWRATH and KINGSTEEL, are both available now, as well, with an additional series in the works.
I've also published a few poetry books. My latest is WHAT TO DO IF YOU'RE BURIED ALIVE. Previous poetry books are DAMNATIO MEMORIAE (lit. "damned memory", winner of the Brick Road Poetry Book Contest), BLUE COLLAR EULOGIES (Steel Toe Books), and LEAVING IOWA (winner of the Liam Rector First Book Award). I was also happy to have my poem, "For My Brother," featured in Goodreads' June 2014 newsletter. For more information and at least one embarrassing childhood photo, please visit wytchfire.com (fantasy) or troublewithhammers.com (poetry).
I've also published a few poetry books. My latest is WHAT TO DO IF YOU'RE BURIED ALIVE. Previous poetry books are DAMNATIO MEMORIAE (lit. "damned memory", winner of the Brick Road Poetry Book Contest), BLUE COLLAR EULOGIES (Steel Toe Books), and LEAVING IOWA (winner of the Liam Rector First Book Award). I was also happy to have my poem, "For My Brother," featured in Goodreads' June 2014 newsletter. For more information and at least one embarrassing childhood photo, please visit wytchfire.com (fantasy) or troublewithhammers.com (poetry).
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
June 6, 2011
I may be a little biased since this book was published by my press Palettes & Quills, but I had very little to do with its selection. Several extremely competent first-readers winnowed this manuscript from 150 submissions to the Second Biennial (International) Poetry Chapbook Contest. Michael's manuscript was then selected from the finalists by poet Dorianne Laux as the winning manuscript. And here's what folks have been saying about it:
Michael Meyerhofer’s Pure Elysium is a paradise, a sweet ride through imagination’s wide, un-mown fields. These compact and wildly various poems- funny, serious, personal, global- continually surprise and delight. -- Dorianne Laux
If this collection is Pure Elysium, then I never want to be impure again. Give me flappers with a flat tire, make my wallet turn up under a bed skirt, and let me listen to, “the sound of two hands clapping / in the vacuum between stars.” Michael Meyerhofer is the master of the twist, the patron saint of lines embodying equal parts comedy and poignancy. This collection is nothing like the knights who “woke in such a fuss / that they dressed themselves backwards,” and readers will want to wear the opposite of chainmail when reading these poems. In short, Meyerhofer has done it again. We’re lightning-struck, and it is the best kind of blessing. —Mary Biddinger
Michael Meyerhofer's poems reside mainly in narrative. But even though they typically begin and operate in story, they often end with an interesting lyric curl, and it is these endings that make me want to go back and reconsider their lineages. Pure Elysium's final poem--a lyric, interestingly, which holds much to admire--declares that "we all carry the gene for greatness." There may indeed be some of that destiny inviting us to peek at its evolution here. —C. J. Sage
I am only the publisher, but how can I not agree with such great reviews!
Michael Meyerhofer’s Pure Elysium is a paradise, a sweet ride through imagination’s wide, un-mown fields. These compact and wildly various poems- funny, serious, personal, global- continually surprise and delight. -- Dorianne Laux
If this collection is Pure Elysium, then I never want to be impure again. Give me flappers with a flat tire, make my wallet turn up under a bed skirt, and let me listen to, “the sound of two hands clapping / in the vacuum between stars.” Michael Meyerhofer is the master of the twist, the patron saint of lines embodying equal parts comedy and poignancy. This collection is nothing like the knights who “woke in such a fuss / that they dressed themselves backwards,” and readers will want to wear the opposite of chainmail when reading these poems. In short, Meyerhofer has done it again. We’re lightning-struck, and it is the best kind of blessing. —Mary Biddinger
Michael Meyerhofer's poems reside mainly in narrative. But even though they typically begin and operate in story, they often end with an interesting lyric curl, and it is these endings that make me want to go back and reconsider their lineages. Pure Elysium's final poem--a lyric, interestingly, which holds much to admire--declares that "we all carry the gene for greatness." There may indeed be some of that destiny inviting us to peek at its evolution here. —C. J. Sage
I am only the publisher, but how can I not agree with such great reviews!
Displaying 1 of 1 review