Poetry from Paradise Valley

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I love anthologies. As a reader of poetry, I enjoy hearing a variety of voices assembled in one place. It's like a choir with each member stepping forward for a solo. As a poet, I appreciate the opportunity to reach a wider audience with a previously published poem. So I am pleased as both a reader and a poet to recommend Poetry from Paradise Valley, edited by Ed Byrne, the editor of the online journal, Valparaiso Poetry Review, one of the first online journals I ever submitted to and still one of my favorites. Having begun the journal ten years ago, Ed decided to do an anniversary collection to celebrate the first decade. Rather than stuff the collection, Ed kept it to a comfortable limit of 50 poems. 

Here's Ed's own description of the book: "Poetry from Paradise Valley includes a stellar roster of 50 poets. Among the contributors are a former Poet Laureate of the United States, a winner of the Griffin International Prize, two Pulitzer Prize winners, two National Book Award winners, two National Book Critics Circle winners, six finalists for the National Book Award, four finalists for the National Book Critics Circle Award, two finalists for the Pulitzer Prize, and a few dozen recipients of other honors, such as fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, etc."

I wish I could say that I'd won of the above-mentioned prizes, but alas, no. I am, however, delighted to have my poem, April at the Arboretum, included among the 50 poems selected.

The collection can be ordered at Pecan Grove's Ordering Page. You can print out an order form or you can order online using PayPal. The book is very reasonably priced at $15. That's a major bargain for 50 poems. You can also order via Amazon, but the better deal for this book is at the publisher's site.

Here's the entire list of the "stellar" poets included in the anthology:

DAVID BAKER * 
JOHN BALABAN
 * CLAIRE BATEMAN * 
J.P. DANCING BEAR * 
MICHELLE BITTING * 
JARED CARTER * 
KATHARINE COLES * 
BILLY COLLINS * 
MARK CONWAY * 
ALFRED CORN * 
BARBARA CROOKER * 
KWAME DAWES * 
CORNELIUS EADY
 * LYNNELL EDWARDS
 * W.D. EHRHART * 
CLAUDIA EMERSON * 
BERNARDINE EVARISTO * 
PATRICIA FARGNOLI * 
ANNIE FINCH * DAISY FRIED * 
BRENDAN GALVIN *  
PAMELA GEMIN * 
REGINALD GIBBONS * 
DAVID GRAHAM * 
H. PALMER HALL * 
JONATHAN HOLDEN * 
T.R. HUMMER * 
GRAY JACOBIK * 
ALLISON JOSEPH * 
DAVID KIRBY * 
DORIANNE LAUX * 
LAURENCE LIEBERMAN * 
FRANNIE LINDSAY * 
DIANE LOCKWARD * 
SEBASTIAN MATTHEWS * 
WILLIAM MATTHEWS * 
WALT McDONALD * 
ELISE PASCHEN * 
KEVIN PILKINGTON *  
STANLEY PLUMLY * 
SHEROD SANTOS * 
MARGOT SCHILPP * 
FLOYD SKLOOT * 
DAVE SMITH * 
VIRGIL SUAREZ *  
DANIEL TOBIN * 
CATHERINE TUFARIELLO * 
BRIAN TURNER * 
INGRID WENDT * 
CHARLES WRIGHT