Marrowbone Lane

Like the crows he describes in one of his witty, wry poems, John J. Ronan casts "a cold eye on life, on death." These edgy, intelligent poems brim with emotion without ever nearing the sentimental. Ronan revels in life and laments inevitable time, but does not wallow. An Irish American steeped in dark joy, Ronan reveals roots in Yeats, Heaney, Mahon and others. "To exist and then not to exist—it's a raw sort of humor," he writes. In his work we see both the raw surface and always, always the humor. These poems are a joy to read.

John J. Ronan is a poet, playwright and journalist. He is also president of American Storyboard, Inc., a non-profit charitable corporation that makes documentary videos. His poetry has appeared in scores of national magazines and reviews, including New England Review, Threepenny Review, Southern Poetry Review, The Hollins Critic, Notre Dame Review, and The Recorder. His books include MARROWBONE LAND (The Backwaters Press, 2009), John J. Ronan: Greatest Hits 1975-2000 (Pudding House Publications, 2001), The Curable Corpse (Folly Cove Books, 2009), and The Catching Self (Folly Cove Books, 1996). His work was also included in an anthology of prize-winning poetry, Sad Little Breathings, edited by Heather McHugh and published in hardcopy and electronically by PublishingOnline in 2001. In 1999, Ronan was named a National Endowment for the Arts Fellow in Literature. He is also a former Bread Loaf Scholar and Ucross Fellow. In June of 2008 he was named Poet Laureate of Gloucester, Massachusetts. His website is theronan.org.