Told in the Seed and Selected Poems

This new collection of Sanora Babb's poems spans more than sixty years of writing and publishing poetry. Many of her earliest poems are added to those of her later years in the original Told in the Seed. The introduction by Carol S. Loranger notes that "Of all Sanora Babb's writings, it is the poetry, perhaps, that offers the most intimate and unvarnished picture of the woman and the artist." In the introduction Loranger weaves together relevant information about Babb's life with the...
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This new collection of Sanora Babb's poems spans more than sixty years of writing and publishing poetry. Many of her earliest poems are added to those of her later years in the original Told in the Seed. The introduction by Carol S. Loranger notes that "Of all Sanora Babb's writings, it is the poetry, perhaps, that offers the most intimate and unvarnished picture of the woman and the artist." In the introduction Loranger weaves together relevant information about Babb's life with the more personal poems to further enhance the reader's appreciation. Babb won the Borestone Mountain Poetry Award in 1967 for "Told in the Seed" and the Gold Medal Award in 1932 for "Captive" from the Mitre Press Anthology, London. With a strong empathy with people and their daily lives, an affinity with all in the natural world, and the ability to elevate the ordinary into the extraordinary, Babb reflects all this in her poetry. Sanora Bab's enthusiasm and reverence for nature is infectious and refreshes our senses. She makes us aware that "we invade this timeless space." With subtle wit and precise word choice, Babb speaks directly to the reader in a conversational tone making spot-on observations. Her figurative language brings mystery and aliveness to our world where "walls of this canyon pulse like our blood." In passionate love poems Babb shows delight in love and relationships, yet with respect for partings. Instead of a sense of loss, the connection between human spirits and nature is revealed as its natural order. -Sandra Berris, author of Ash on Wind This beautifully edited retrospective on the poetry of Sanora Babb reveals the haunting timelessness of her work. Her use of whimsy, detail and irony makes her feel quite contemporary. Her imagery complicates her verse without making it obscure: "I am a wind/That will trouble/Your door/And never/Come in." But most impressive is her ability to conclude a poem at precisely the right moment when "Language is undone,/Thoughts translate/To pure meaning." -Cathryn Essinger, author of The Apricot and the Moon