About the book
In this collection, Nancy Dillingham presents a
quirky and selective “history” of individuals and places, some bearing
the Dillingham name. Traversing eras and time, she manages to portray, with
the poet’s eye, evocative images—sometimes plaintive and poignant,
sometimes playful and ironic—that somehow rise to the level of universal.
Her poems offer commentary on a wide range of subjects from 9/11 to
self-immolation, from domestic violence to sexual discrimination, from
tattoo artists to pick up artists, from boot-leggers to black bears, from
the mystique of Jerry Lee Lewis to the secret lives of hummingbirds and how
they received the moniker “flying jewels.”
Praise for Nancy Dillingham
Dillingham, independent of universities and New York publishing circles, has
developed a mastery of her craft as well as a distinctive style. The
wondrous, grim, and familial in her mountain experience come to light in
compact lines that are both facets of and links in her narratives. What we
get is poetic . . . and accessible.
Rob Neufeld, book reviewer for Sunday Asheville Citizen-Times
Death and life and a blissful, clever wordcrafting highlight this exquisite
book of poetry. Nancy Dillingham sees the world through a lens that is
bright and dark and relentless, putting Mary Oliver on notice. There is
power here, and ragged glory. Get this. Read it. If you spring from these
southern Appalachian highlands, you already are living it.
Byron Ballard, folklorist, author, “Asfidity and Mad-Stones”
Samples of the work:
Late Autumn: A Valediction
The bungalow next door
lit by maple trees
housed a family of four
seemed serene
before the morning
head shorn and forlorn
the wife immolated herself
with an acetylene torch
became a flame
red as the lone leaf
that settled itself against
the scorched front porch
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Homecoming: In Memoriam
911
After that September mourning
even the fog
seemed a silvery gift
wrapping itself
around gaunt trees
whose fallen leaves
like ashes
from twin towers
scattered the ground
I remember calling your name
seeing your face
feeling your embrace
knowing still nothing ever after
will be the same
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About the Author
Nancy Dillingham is a sixth-generation Dillingham
from Big Ivy in western North Carolina. She is the author of nine books of
poetry and short fiction and co-editor, with Celia
Miles, of four anthologies of WNC women writers. Her volume of poems
Home was nominated for a SIBA. She lives in Asheville, North Carolina.
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