Synopses & Reviews
Drawing upon four decades of poetry and including an ample selection of new work, this perceptive collection shares a wealth of intimate experiences and compelling encounters with the world. Citing an extensive range of social, scientific, literary, and philosophical sources, each piece offers a lens of both telescopic and microscopic precision. Sharing insight into many private forms of sufferingmental illness, loss of loved ones, family crisespersonal issues are used to assess continued struggles with the profound questions of what it means to be human, moral, and conscious. Directly responding to current social and cultural issues, these engaging meditations examine the complex interrelations of people with their environment, work, health, cultural upheaval, and natural disasters. Deftly detailing the essence of human existence, small instances of daily activityfrom drinking tea to remembering childhood experiencesare brought to the forefront and gently articulate the value of human life.
Review
"[Ramke] is the rare poet who seems to become more himself with each new book, rather than more like an imitation of himself. . . . And the new poems here are among Ramke's best." Publishers Weekly, starrred review
Review
"He defies the conventions of both the traditional lyric and its antagonists." Chicago Review
Review
"Ramke's poetry is nothing if not an attempt to find the lips and tongue of history." Double Room
Review
"The translucent transience of life flowing has seldom been more poignantly and pertinently evoked. . . . He is our Heraclitus." John Ashbery, author, Self Portrait in a Convex Mirror
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"It is [Ramke's] unflinching comparison of fault and perfection that makes his poems believable." Boston Review
Synopsis
Drawing upon four decades of his poetry, and beginning with an ample selection of new work, Theory of Mind: New & Selected Poems, 1978-2008 demonstrates Bin Ramke's ability to bring a cornucopia of human knowledge to bear upon the individual's most intimate experiences and most compelling encounters with the world. Whether Mr. Ramke is writing about the exigencies of family life, the complex interrelations of people with environment, or the meaning of work, of health crises, of cultural upheaval, of natural disaster--he is able to draw upon an unprecedented range of social, scientific, literary, and philosophical sources. Such writing offers a lens of both telescopic and microscopic precision, and deepens our understanding of how intricately collaged is each instance of human existence.
About the Author
Bin Ramke is the editor of the Denver Quarterly and teaches literature and creative writing at the University of Denver. He is the author of nine poetry collections, including Airs, Waters, Places; A Massacre of the Innocents; Tendril; and Wake.