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Sightlines: A Poet's Diary by Janet Riehl
Book Summary InformationAuthor: Janet Riehl Edition: Paperback Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published) Published: 2006-02-08 ISBN: 0595374999 Number of pages: 190 Publisher: iUniverse, Inc.
Book Reviews of Sightlines: A Poet's DiaryBook Review: A beautiful tribute to family Summary: 5 Stars
Janet Grace Riehl's poems are a tribute to family, individuality, togetherness, love, death and pain. In 2004, she lost her sister, Julia, in a car accident. Grief and joy stand side by side in her poems. But it is her love of family that permeates the book. With her dad's poetry and a lifetime of his stories, she has created multiple vignettes that allow us, the readers, to know her and her family.
Her family is both unique and common. Unique in their talents and personalities, but also common in the experiences and emotions of human life.
In one poem she praises her mother's individuality and in another she speaks of wiping her butt today - both aspects too true to those of us who have admired our parents and watched as age played its tricks on them. Janet struggles with grief at the same time she fights the weariness of a care giver. I've been there, and I understand.
The first poem is about Julia, written by her father. The last poem in the book, written by Janet, is the first anniversary of Julia's death. In between those pages, life has gone on - grandchildren grieved, Janet's mother requires extensive care, and Janet and her father find the treasures of a lifetime in their day-to-day activities.
As with most families, Janet doesn't solve all the problems. She simply learns to understand and deal with what life and love bring to us. Her ability to convey personalities and emotions through verbal pictures is the key to the success of her poetry.
Summary of Sightlines: A Poet's DiaryA beautiful collection filled with 90 poems, 190 pages, 25 photos and tribute to a loved family. Sightlines offers a frank portrait of a family not only coming to terms with its grief, but also celebrating its past and difficult present. Although deeply personal, these poems strike poignant and universal chords. They offer a vision of life filled with little treasures that carry us back to what is truly important in our lives. ?Village wisdom for the 21st century. Between these covers lives an enlightening friend.? ?Clive Matson, author of Let the Crazy Child Write! ?Janet Riehl?s poems tread that thin line between insightful nostalgia and objectivity Midwesterners are so good at.? ?Hal Zina Bennett, author of Write from the Heart ?Rich and vibrant, complete with vivid language that bursts, or sneaks, into your mind.? ?James BlueWolf, author of Sitting by His Bones and Grandpa Says As the author of this book, I want to share some of the creative process behind writing Sightlines. The book evolved over a year, following a secluded retreat, in response to my sister's death in a car accident. During this time, I came to a strong sense that the world is charged with meaning, and that is a poem. The only trick is to tease out the meaning. That is what I proceeded to do as I moved back and forth between my Midwest home to my Northern California home. Putting together this poet's diary was a little like assembling a 1,000 piece puzzle. Mortality became keenly real to me as my parents and I aged together. The sorrow of life's fragility, and joy at its tenderness, form the sightlines of all five sections in this collection of 90 poems as I examine and share the people and places of my life.
Poetry Books
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