Passions & Gratitudes

"Melanie Perish evocatively covers a lot of poetic territory in this collection. Family is a recurring theme, as is the case with relationships in general. An impressive physical geography emerges in these verses, the poems spending creative time in states around the country, in a steel mill, on ski slopes, at fishing holes. Fishing, indeed, is a major focus, its charms and challenges invitingly treated across a number of pages. Seasons get their share of atten- tion as well. And, back to family, children call up magical language, as when four year old Veronica observes that clouds are dark because night falls into them. The author conveys here, with honesty, style and craftsmanship, an involving story of a life fully lived." --Joe Crowley Poet, Former President University of Nevada, Reno

These poems repeatedly ask the reader to turn and listen: whether it is the hint of a lover's hand or trout shadow in a creek, they intimate attention, a desire for more than can be understood or expressed. It is this desire set against the days of labor, love and fishing that is the backbone of this book. The poems in Passions and Gratitudes will lie awake at night with you, restless to be set free. --Shaun T. Griffin, Author of Woodsmoke, Wind, and the Peregrine

This is an inspired collection of profoundly meaningful poems. They exude a deep awareness of life, love, and the essence of being a woman from a poet with great style and creativity. One cannot help but be captured by her honesty and true sense of self. --Sara Lafrance, President, Educational Pathways, International