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“An extraordinary journey”

“The imagery is concise and brilliant, and the craftsmanship is masterful”

cover-snip-3In the High Weeds

Winner of the 2020 Stevens Manuscript Award from the National Federation of State Poetry Societies

(NFSPS Press, 2021)
79 pgs. 6″ X 9″. Perfect bound.

In The High Weeds is an extraordinary journey from youth to maturity through an immersion in art, mythology, and family memories that provide a path that glimmers and illuminates our lives through the darkness laid out beneath uncertain stars.  It entrances me.  The imagery is concise and brilliant, and the craftsmanship is masterful across a wide range of poetic styles as the poet explores the mysteries of childhood, the greater responsibilities and frightening shadows of adulthood, and the challenges of raising healthy children in an uncertain world.  Even as, the poet writes, “Time rolls out and ebbs/and ebbs again until the shore is dry/as wasp wings,” we find ourselves lifted on the fragile latticework of those dry wings and transported through her words to a meditative understanding of the peacefulness of all things in balance. The poet nears closure with the magnificent poetic statement that “Now is the time to leave/and wander/to bow to the mountains/and breathe the wisdom/of saints and sages/to savor the sweet lantern light/of the pear tree/to shadow the river’s bending banks/and bathe in the petals/of the weeping cherry.” What a wonderful journey to take with a brave and compassionate guide!

–Jared Smith, author of That’s How It Is
and Shadows Within The Roaring Fork

Joyride is a triumph!”

A beautifully written book, fizzing with marvelous imagery, energy, joie de vivre.
Not to be missed!”

“An exhilarating trip”

“Joyride is a joy to read … rip-snorting …”

“An entirely wonderful collection …”

“You need to pick up this book and read it.”

Poet and editor Mike Rehling’s review of Joyride:

for-website-joyride-cover-4Joyride

Winner of the Marianne Bluger Book Award from Haiku Canada

(Red Moon Press, 2021)
93 pgs. 6″ X 9″. Perfect bound.

Joyride is a triumph! This is a remarkably sure-footed and continuously entertaining collection. Hambrick’s similes are fresh, and knowing that they are coming does not ever quite prepare the reader for what’s around the corner. In Hambrick’s work, the prose is all flash and noose tight, while the poems are calm and steadily understated. And the whole thing hangs together like the first ninety-nine years of the deacon’s masterpiece”

– John Stevenson, author of emoji moon

“A beautifully written book, fizzing with marvelous imagery, energy, joie de vivre. A joyride indeed, where experiences such as biting into watermelon sweetness, or feeling the highway wind through the open car window, are lifted above the mundane. Hambrick takes us on journeys filled with humanity, humor, insight, loss, and renewal. Crisp and refreshingly clear, her uniquely musical voice anchors these multi-layered haibun gems in wonder. Not to be missed!”

 – Stella Pierides, author of Of This World   

“Jennifer Hambrick’s award-winning haibun take us from one place to another, but these tales also traverse the delicate, awkward, and hilarious territory between the seasons of life. Joyride is reminiscent of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, in search of the inherent goodness in people, despite their circumstances and quirks. Hambrick reiterates that joy is not only a contagious outlook but a reliable tonic – something that our souls need.”

– Cherie Hunter Day, author of apology moon

“… an exhilarating trip. […] Hambrick is not afraid to take chances or push the boundaries of the form. […] Often, the best part of a joyride (like life) has to do not with the speed or length of the journey, but with what is found along the way. There are few better than Hambrick to point out what we shouldn’t miss.”

– Rich Youmans, editor-in-chief, Contemporary Haibun Online  
Read the full review here. 

 

These are poems of fresh air at the beginning of a winter journey, and I breathe them in deep.

Unscathed_photo

“In Unscathed, there is a classical sense of what a poem is supposed to be – clean, sharp, in its moment. The collection rings with love throughout, in all its warmth and doubt. And while everything has already been said about love in this world, Hambrick grounds the matter with a fresh palette of questions, longings and unadulterated class. Pound for pound, a great first book of poetry.”

– Scott Woods, author of We Over Here Now

“With an eye for the cherished moment, Jennifer Hambrick captures the essence of love. Each of these poems pauses to look more closely, to reflect and bring to our attention the hope that accompanies the pang of loss and the ache of growing old, the way the body fails and yet the light of the spirit shines on. These are poems of fresh air at the beginning of a winter journey, and I breathe them in deep.”

– Sarah Wells, author of Pruning Burning Bushes

“The poems, delicate yet profound vignettes of childhood and mortality, nature and family, are sketched with a deft hand.”

– Dianne Borsenik, publisher, NightBallet Press

Purchase Unscathed at NightBallet Press.