The Mapmaker's Dream by Bill Meissner (English) Paperback Book

Description: The Mapmaker's Dream by Bill Meissner In "The Mapmaker and His Woman," the mapmaker narrator travels, in a few short hours, to Budapest, Salamanca, Punta Cana and Dusseldorf, but always returns home to the woman he loves. In another poem, Harry Houdinis critics attempt to suppress his opinions and negate his magical powers. In "The Groundskeepers Teenage Daughters," young girls speak out against their domineering, controlling father. A prize-winning poem features the haunting voice of the ghost of Marilyn Monroe, who talks about her image appearing in her favorite mirror and how it effects the men who see it. The poems take you to variety of unique places: to a small Mexican village in the Yucatan, to the treacherous Gulf waters between Cuba and Florida, to a traveling carnival, to Bob Dylans north country back roads, to outer space, a million miles from earth, then back to the isolated county roads in the rural heartland. Many poems focus on personal experiences, including childhood incidents and relationships with mothers, fathers and lovers. One section of the book, entitled "Borders: In Some Other Country," throws a spotlight on political and social issues, with wry and poignant poems about the repression of free speech, the use of nuclear weapons, gender roles, and the prevalence of gun violence. Another section in the collection features characterizations of famous American icons such as Albert Einstein, Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, James Dean, and the 19th century classic poet, Walt Whitman. These poems reverberate beyond the celebrities to make unique comments about American life and culture. Sometimes comic, sometimes poignant, the poems in The Mapmakers Dream take you on journeys to places you never expected to go, and to characters you never dreamed youd meet. FORMAT Paperback LANGUAGE English CONDITION Brand New Author Biography Author and teacher Bill Meissner has published four previous collections of poetry: American Compass (U. of Notre Dame Press), Learning to Breathe Underwater and The Sleepwalkers Son (Ohio U. Press) and Twin Sons of Different Mirrors (Milkweed Editions). His chapbook with a carnival/circus theme is The Glass Carnival (Paper Soul Press). Hes also the author of two books of short stories: Hitting into the Wind (Random House Publishers/SMU Press paperback/Dzanc Press ebook) and The Road to Cosmos (U. of Notre Dame Press). His first novel, Spirits in the Grass (U. of Notre Dame Press), was awarded the Midwest Book Award. Meissner is the recipient of several awards, including a National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship, two Loft McKnight Fellowships in poetry and fiction, a Loft-McKnight Award of Distinction in Fiction, several PEN/NEA Syndicated Fiction Awards for short stories, and a Jerome Fellowship for travel/study in Mexico. His poems have been published and anthologized widely during the past years. Several poems included in The Mapmakers Dream have won awards, including "Song for the Refugees," which was selected as a finalist in the 2018 International Poetry Competition, sponsored by The Atlanta Review. Bills hobbies/interests include travel (especially to tropical locations), rock music, baseball, and photography. He also collects pulp fiction magazines, music memorabilia, and (too many) vintage typewriters. He has taught creative writing at St. Cloud State University, and, as a visiting writer, he frequently presents workshops at local elementary schools, high schools and colleges. He grew up in Iowa and Wisconsin, and lives in St. Cloud, Minnesota with his wife Christine. Review Lucky are the readers who get to experience the delights of another fine poetry collection by Bill Meissner. His fresh and imaginative poems wed narrative to a personal lyric voice, offering stories with glorious images and metaphors, as when an ocean wave "bows down and becomes / a wing of bright diamonds . . ." Meissners generous vision takes in the mundane and the otherworldly, the tame and the madcap, writing not only about the labor of fathers, black ice on a rural road, and the pleasures of baseball, but also about carnivals, Barbie dolls, public figures, and champions of strange world records. Watch for interesting recurrences in this body of work, such as tributes to language itself, and to those people and experiences that drew the poet deeper into learning the right words and how to put them together to celebrate, chortle, grieve, exorcize, and express longing and love. In one of the poems, a permanent scar made by a pencil stab reminds us that "Words enter you when you least expect them, at that moment / when youre trying to catch something thats falling." Were grateful Meissner is a nimble catcher who paid close attention to life and language and who used his considerable talents to write these poems.--Margaret Hasse, author of Between Us, Winner of the Midwest Book Award for Poetry With a passion for narrative, Bill Meissner creates poems that, with the eye of a novelist and the ear of a poet, reveal a world of intricate relationships. A map-maker sees his wife in the cities and roads he delineates; while spinning out on the ice, a man reaches for his wifes hand and clasps it so tightly that "we memorize each others fingerprints." We find Marilyn Monroes ghost speaking out of a mirror, and teenage daughters straining to break free of stifling limitations. Each poem fleshes out longing, its many gradations and flavors, and it is soul-work at its best. The ending of the "Mapmaker and His Woman" hints at the essence of this fine collection: "Two people standing on uncharted ground, /staring at each other, their eyes understanding/that they are the shortest distance between two points."--John Minczeski, author of A Letter to Serafin and Circle Routes. The quiet intensity, and clear-eyed vision of The Mapmakers Dream is evident not only in every poem, but in virtually every line. I marvel at Bill Meissners technical finesse, as I do the heart and range of emotions that drives and graces this compelling and memorable new collection. There is no missing that he is an original and hugely talented writer.--Jack Driscoll, author of four books of poetry and The Goat Fish and the Lovers Knot Details ISBN1635348315 Author Bill Meissner Language English Year 2019 ISBN-10 1635348315 ISBN-13 9781635348316 Format Paperback Publication Date 2019-01-18 Pages 88 Publisher Finishing Line Press Imprint Finishing Line Press Illustrations Illustrations, black and white Audience General We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. With fast shipping, low prices, friendly service and well over a million items - you're bound to find what you want, at a price you'll love! TheNile_Item_ID:159662384;

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