Nancy Thomas celebrates language—its sounds, grammar, quirks, and all that words can and can't do. In these poems, she plays with common figures of speech in the English language, celebrates relationships with peculiar people, and attempts to approach growing older with courage and humor. You'll want to smile, laugh, and sometimes groan. You may also find grace hiding in the silences between the words.
Where else will you experience Gerard Manley Hopkins and Bobby Darin jamming together except in Nancy's "playground of words"? Most rewarding of all: watch her tease the wiggly line that tries to separate light verse from fertile meditation.
Johan Maurer
Thomas declares and promises on her title page: "poems of wit, whimsy, and (maybe) wisdom." She lives up to her wry promise abundantly. Here is a collection of images and narratives both serious and playful. You will find in plenitude passion, wit, and wise reflection on life's sometimes heartaches and its fulsome joys.
Ed Higgins
Some poets speak from behind a mask; Nancy plays without a mask, though I suspect she contains multitudes she has not yet decided to share. These poems are for readers who are willing to play and poke and prod without fear of offense or of being hurt, even though there may be a verbal banana peel or two waiting to catch them if they aren't watching where they step.
Becky Ankeny
Nancy Thomas
has spent much of her adult life in Latin America where she discovered a vocation for training writers of different cultures. Her previous books of poetry include Of Deity and Bones, The Secret Colors of God, and Close to the Ground. Nancy lives with her husband Hal in Newberg, Oregon.