What We Take With Us

<p>Ranging from the humble and poignant to the humorous <strong>Sylvia Woods</strong>' poems explore her personal experience as an educator as well as her own transition from daughter to mother and eventually to grandmother. Throughout Woods' work <strong>the landscape and culture of Appalachia is a driving force</strong>. So too is <strong>the memory of family and the myth of family history</strong>.</p><p><br></p><p>The poems in <strong><em>What We Take With Us</em></strong> are as <strong>acclaimed poet Maurice Manning</strong> says as true as a river fork and as durable as the hills above. He continues They are also like the many people and voices here recalled humble and hard-won. The grit and humor walk side by side with grief and spunk but isn't that what we ask of poetry this lofty air?</p><p><br></p><p><strong>Kentucky Poet Laureate George Ella Lyon </strong>praises Sylvia Woods' work with these words: Like switchback roads in the mountains she hails from ... Woods' poems are going to take you places and you don't want to miss the ride!</p><p><br></p><p>Author <strong>Darnell Arnoult </strong>describes <strong><em>What We Take With Us</em></strong> in this way: Sylvia Woods 'captures' the reader in a vault of rich images layers and layers of ideas to mine and gorgeously crafted moments of recognition for the poet and for us her readers. This may be a debut collection but Woods is no novice to poetry. Each poem is a gem crafted by an experienced hand strung together jewel after jewel.</p><p><br></p><p><strong><em>What We Take With Us</em> </strong>is published by <strong>EastOver Press</strong>. (<strong>www.EastOverPress.com</strong>)</p>