WINNER OF THE 2016 BLUE LIGHT PRESS AWARD

KB Ballentine's poetry embodies what James Wright called "the delicacy and strength of lace." Love and blues are her subjects, and she is faithful to them in lines that are firm yet fanciful, offering trellises with blooms in every season. Perhaps this is the "season of want," but in KB's hands the season is plentiful; the poems regale and nurture us, croon and soothe. The Perfume of Leaving is a gift that each song gives back after sorrow. From the elegant lyricism of "Blueshift" to the grudges "clutched like salt," our...