Written over a period of twelve years and published in magazines and anthologies, these beautiful poems of place and Abenaki Indian heritage are addressed to the land, to the poet's two sons James and Jesse, to his wife Carol, and to himself. A few poems invoking the land join others of close observation of the natural world of native New England and the poet's meditations upon it. In its essence, the land and culture Bruchac celebrates is not lost to him, but is a heritage to be passed on through his family. In a second section, Travelling Stories, the well-travelled poet views creatures and...

"Full of poems that stand alone as consummate accomplishments, Conditions and Cures nevertheless coheres as a book about life-and-death verities, strategies for survival or triumph or at least coping gracefully. The comic is one of those strategies, and Ken Waldman is often at his most hilarious when he's addressing subjects another poet might murder with solemnity. In addition, he frequently engages with demanding forms like pantoums, villanelles, sestinas and sonnets, submitting to their guidance but never losing his independence. The secret of such a trick is his ear: a professional...

Ken Waldman has toured throughout North America as Alaska's Fiddling Poet since 1995. He is the author of six poetry collections and has released seven CDs. This, his first book of prose, is part memoir, part travel notes, and part artist how-to. A Blue Highways for 2009. Ken's story is.all our stories, collected and distilled by a roving poet/musician possessed of a clear eye and a big heart. Waldman is clearly in the tradition of Walt Whitman, Woody Guthrie, John Steinbeck, Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Ken Kesey. Jim Clark, author of Handiwork, Dancing on Canaan's Ruins, and Notions: A Jim...