 |
Book Reviews, Book
Lover Resources, Advice for Writers and Publishers
|
|
Home / Reviewer's
Bookwatch
|
|
Reviewer's Bookwatch
|
Volume 18, Number 9
|
September 2018
|
Midwest Book Review Link: http://www.midwestbookreview.com/rbw/sep_18.htm
Inspirational Verse for Those Who Hunger and Thirst: A
Book of Poems to Feed the Soul
Artemis Craig
Artemis Craig Publishing
http://artemiscraigpublishing.com
9780989087605, Paperback $15.00
https://www.amazon.com/Inspirational-Verse-Those-Hunger-Thirst/dp/0989087603
B00HLXV864
https://www.amazon.com/Inspirational-Verse-Those-Hunger-Thirst-ebook/dp/B00HLXV864/
Marlan Warren, Reviewer
Originally published in Roadmap Girl's Book Buzz blog http://roadmapgirlsbookbuzz.blogspot.com
SPIRITUAL JOURNEY OF A FIREWALKER POET
I have respect for anyone's spiritual journey. And I have a lot of respect for the poet Artemis Craig, whom I met at USC, when we were both in film school studying screenwriting. Now, a couple decades later, Craig has risen out of the ashes of Hollywood as an evangelical poet who has walked through fire, and lived to tell her story in the form of "Inspirational Verse for Those Who Hunger and Thirst: A Book of Poems to Feed the Soul."
With straightforward honesty and a gift for storytelling, Craig has arranged the poems in this anthology as an odyssey washed in the blood of heartaches, losses, and disappointments after returning home as the Prodigal Daughter. All the elements that make "inspirational verse" inspirational are there (finding and praising the Grace of God), woven into searing moments from Craig's life, told with her flair for dramatic prose and metaphor.
Her post-graduation first experience--pitching to execs at a major studio--soured her forever on staying on that track. Many film school alumni can relate (this one does). A sensitive soul, Craig stayed away from the written word until she began writing poetry in the 21st Century, finally gaining the spiritual strength to openly share it in 2013 with this book.
The poem that opens the book, "Speak Now," reflects the pain felt by many a disillusioned film student:
"Without words I became invisible which was fine by me,
Found a home for my anger and bitterness in my invisibility.
Disappointment and hatred festered inside all the while,
But none knew because through it all I wore a smile."
I felt personal resonance with her personal poems about loss. One deeply regrets missing the passing of her grandmother because Craig was busy pursuing her career on the other coast. I was at USC editing my film for class when news of my father's sudden passing came.
One of the most moving poems is "Life Not Mine to Save," remembering her futile attempts to save her father's life when he died of heart failure:
"One, one thousand, two, one thousand
Chest compressions like I'd been taught weren't enough
Formed a seal over your mouth and into it blew a quick puff.
Stay with me! Stay with me! But you refused to wake…"
Afterward she fills such bitterness, that she questions God's actions:
"Though it's hard to believe, your life was not mine to save.
Anger at God is all I can feel,
That along with the hope that somehow
This can't possibly be real."
The poem plays out like a short film. With a "resolution" that is accepting and spiritual:
"Away from me, Daddy, your body lies in the cold grave
It seems like only yesterday, try as I might,
Your life was never mine to save.
But mine to cherish in moments of panic and doubt,
To keep as memories when I feel trapped and can't get out."
I had an elderly aunt who would tell the story of her life and end it with "I didn't know they'd throw the book at me!" Here, Artemis Craig, has thrown a book out of her life for others to gain some solace as they grapple with their own journeys.
As Charles Bukowski once said: "What matters most is how well you walk through the fire."
Artemis Craig
Artemis Craig Publishing
http://artemiscraigpublishing.com
9780989087605, Paperback $15.00
https://www.amazon.com/Inspirational-Verse-Those-Hunger-Thirst/dp/0989087603
B00HLXV864
https://www.amazon.com/Inspirational-Verse-Those-Hunger-Thirst-ebook/dp/B00HLXV864/
Marlan Warren, Reviewer
Originally published in Roadmap Girl's Book Buzz blog http://roadmapgirlsbookbuzz.blogspot.com
SPIRITUAL JOURNEY OF A FIREWALKER POET
I have respect for anyone's spiritual journey. And I have a lot of respect for the poet Artemis Craig, whom I met at USC, when we were both in film school studying screenwriting. Now, a couple decades later, Craig has risen out of the ashes of Hollywood as an evangelical poet who has walked through fire, and lived to tell her story in the form of "Inspirational Verse for Those Who Hunger and Thirst: A Book of Poems to Feed the Soul."
With straightforward honesty and a gift for storytelling, Craig has arranged the poems in this anthology as an odyssey washed in the blood of heartaches, losses, and disappointments after returning home as the Prodigal Daughter. All the elements that make "inspirational verse" inspirational are there (finding and praising the Grace of God), woven into searing moments from Craig's life, told with her flair for dramatic prose and metaphor.
Her post-graduation first experience--pitching to execs at a major studio--soured her forever on staying on that track. Many film school alumni can relate (this one does). A sensitive soul, Craig stayed away from the written word until she began writing poetry in the 21st Century, finally gaining the spiritual strength to openly share it in 2013 with this book.
The poem that opens the book, "Speak Now," reflects the pain felt by many a disillusioned film student:
"Without words I became invisible which was fine by me,
Found a home for my anger and bitterness in my invisibility.
Disappointment and hatred festered inside all the while,
But none knew because through it all I wore a smile."
I felt personal resonance with her personal poems about loss. One deeply regrets missing the passing of her grandmother because Craig was busy pursuing her career on the other coast. I was at USC editing my film for class when news of my father's sudden passing came.
One of the most moving poems is "Life Not Mine to Save," remembering her futile attempts to save her father's life when he died of heart failure:
"One, one thousand, two, one thousand
Chest compressions like I'd been taught weren't enough
Formed a seal over your mouth and into it blew a quick puff.
Stay with me! Stay with me! But you refused to wake…"
Afterward she fills such bitterness, that she questions God's actions:
"Though it's hard to believe, your life was not mine to save.
Anger at God is all I can feel,
That along with the hope that somehow
This can't possibly be real."
The poem plays out like a short film. With a "resolution" that is accepting and spiritual:
"Away from me, Daddy, your body lies in the cold grave
It seems like only yesterday, try as I might,
Your life was never mine to save.
But mine to cherish in moments of panic and doubt,
To keep as memories when I feel trapped and can't get out."
I had an elderly aunt who would tell the story of her life and end it with "I didn't know they'd throw the book at me!" Here, Artemis Craig, has thrown a book out of her life for others to gain some solace as they grapple with their own journeys.
As Charles Bukowski once said: "What matters most is how well you walk through the fire."
No comments:
Post a Comment