Nine Acres (Paperback)

Nathaniel Perry

ISBN 10: 0983300801 / ISBN 13: 9780983300809

Published by The American Poetry Review, 2011

About this Item

Paperback. Selected by Marie Howe from over one thousand submissions, Nine Acres is the winner of the American Poetry Review/APR Honickman First Book Prize. Taking their titles from chapters of a 1930s small-scale farming handbook, the fifty-two poems in this cycle create a handbook for living and explore sustainability on many levelson the land, in the family, and in the spirit.As Marie Howe writes in her introduction to the book, "Nathanial Perry has collected poems into this book as one plants a field, as an act of husbandry: each line a furrow where seeds flourish or fail. Husbandryto create a dwelling place and to care for itthese are the ancient acts.""Soil Surface Management"I spent the afternoon breakingground. The tiller bucked and groanedat the job, but with each pass I sawa perfect blankness, like I'd been loaneda second life in which to growa third. The sun sat on its porchand smiled. I wondered if the dirtwould be enough, a kind of torchto set inside our lives to say,we'll grow our food like this, our planswill look like this like soil squaredand measured into beds by a mansweating through his shirt with effort.In dirt is one life we can chooseto make. I spent the afternoonbreaking what I knew we'd use.Nathaniel Perry lives with his family in rural southside Virginia. He is the editor of the Hampden-Sydney Poetry Review and teaches at Hampden-Sydney College. Winner of the 2011 American Poetry Review/APR Honickman First Book Prize. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9780983300809

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Nine Acres (Paperback)
• Publisher: The American Poetry Review
• Publication Date: 2011
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0983300801
• ISBN 13: 9780983300809
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

Selected by Marie Howe from over one thousand submissions, Nine Acres is the winner of the American Poetry Review/APR Honickman First Book Prize. Taking their titles from chapters of a 1930s small-scale farming handbook, the fifty-two poems in this cycle create a handbook for living and explore sustainability on many levels—on the land, in the family, and in the spirit.

As Marie Howe writes in her introduction to the book, "Nathanial Perry has collected poems into this book as one plants a field, as an act of husbandry: each line a furrow where seeds flourish or fail. Husbandry—to create a dwelling place and to care for it—these are the ancient acts."

"Soil Surface Management"

I spent the afternoon breaking
ground. The tiller bucked and groaned
at the job, but with each pass I saw
a perfect blankness, like I'd been loaned
a second life in which to grow
a third. The sun sat on its porch
and smiled. I wondered if the dirt
would be enough, a kind of torch
to set inside our lives to say,
we'll grow our food like this, our plans
will look like this —like soil squared
and measured into beds by a man
sweating through his shirt with effort.
In dirt is one life we can choose
to make. I spent the afternoon
breaking what I knew we'd use.

Nathaniel Perry lives with his family in rural southside Virginia. He is the editor of the Hampden-Sydney Poetry Review and teaches at Hampden-Sydney College.

About the Author

Nathaniel Perry: Nathaniel Perry lives with his family in rural southside Virginia. He is the editor of the Hampden-Sydney Poetry Review and teaches at Hampden-Sydney College.
Marie Howe: Marie Howe was born in 1950 and received her MFA from Columbia University. Her debut volume, The Good Thief, was selected by Margaret Atwood as winner of the 1987 Open Competition of the National Poetry Series. Since then, she has published two more collections, What the Living Do and The Kingdom of the Ordinary.