To Float, to Drown, to Close up, to Open

"The poems in E. Alex Pierce's new collection invite readers to meditate upon language embedded in landscape, and trace the formation of a young artist who begins in music, arrives at theatre, and ends in poetry. From striking individual poems such as "The fetch of the wind" and "The sky full of empty rooms" to the stunning stretched sonnet sequence "The Stanzas. Rooms."--Which searches a passionate relationship with a photographer for the beginnings of a poet's voice--the collection moves from the fragmented textures of childhood memory in an East Coast village to the complex juxtaposition of art museums, performance, opera, and string quartets. These fiercely poised poems are layered and rich, with a sensuous attention to line and breath; a major new volume from an accomplished poet."--