murmurs at the gate

Suzanne S. Rancourt’s second book of poetry uses both fictional and auto-biographical events to create a chorus of survivors. These poems are for the unspeakable, the marginalized, the “in-betweeners,” create a chorus of survivors in the theatre of life’s sorrow, love, tragedy, beauty, and profound human resiliency. Ms. Rancourt’s life attests to being a survivor, and states, “Prejudice is non-discriminatory.” murmurs at the gate, is a poetic narrative that explores the harsh measures of life’s wars. “If we are at war with everything, who are the Warriors? Who are the survivors? And, for how long does the war cry reverberate?” Marine and Army veteran, and multi-modal artist, Ms. Rancourt brings to the reader her rich and diverse metaphors inspired by rural mountain living and Native American culture. Ms. Rancourt honors all her ancestors in this astounding book where every murmur could be your own.

Ms. Rancourt is Abenaki/Huron decent, born and raised in the mountains of West Central Maine currently residing in the Adirondack Mountains, NY. A multi-modal artist, she has work appearing in Bright Hill Press 25th Anniversary Anthology, Dawnland Voices 2.0 #4, Northern New England Review, Bear Review, Three Drops Press, Snapdragon Journal, mgversion2>datura, Sirsee, Slipstream, Muddy River Poetry Review, Ginosko, Journal of Military Experience, Cimarron Review, Callaloo, numerous anthologies, translations, and text books. Her book, Billboard in the Clouds was the winner of the Native Writers' Circle of the Americas First Book Award. Ms. Rancourt holds a Master of Fine Arts in Poetry from Vermont College; Master of Science degree in Educational Psychology from SUNY, Albany, NY; a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies in Expressive Arts: therapy, education, and consulting from the European Graduate School, Switzerland. Ms. Rancourt is a Certified Facilitator and Affiliate of the Amherst Writers and Artists. She is a NY Credentialed Alcohol and Substance Abuse Counselor. Ms. Rancourt holds rank in both Aikido and Iaido reflecting her 18 years of practice and training. She is a veteran of both the USMC and US Army. She continues to serve through the Saratoga County (NY) Veterans Peer to Peer Mentoring program.