Description: Theology at Eighty Miles an Hour and Other Poems in various ways explores the dual aspect of every moment of life--what captures the attention and also the overlay of what is seen at the same time out of the corner of the mind's eye. Here are all kinds of "ghosts," not the supernatural kind, but memories and imaginings of people, places, and things that remain no matter where one is or what one does. They can be a Cherokee medicine wheel hidden in tall grass, the unseen presence at the other end of a phone call, a copperhead coiled under the boards of a trestle on the Virginia Creeper Trail, or the hundreds of thousands of human feet that have worn waves into cathedral steps since medieval times. These poems use verse that is sometimes humorous or ironic, sometimes somber, to suggest the other (and Other) that is always present.
Brief description: Warren Meredith Harris is a poet and playwright and the founding editor of a regional literary annual. He is the author of The Night Ballerina: A Poem Sequence in Seven Parts (2012).
Review Quotes: "With keen awareness and insight, Warren takes us on a journey through the everyday and the faraway, opening our hearts and minds to fresh perspectives, inviting us to see more, feel more. I always read Warren's poems at least twice, aloud, to hear the music in his words."
--Daryl Ann Beeghley, Poet, Singer, Songwriter
"Some poets tend toward metaphysics, and Warren Harris is such a poet. His book parses the mortal and the divine and their convergences. His poems are grounded in the felt experience of the tangible, along with expressions of the intangible--the soul's longings and elations. . . . His poems are grounded in common experience and a joy to read as he navigates through the treacherous straights of theology. We see ourselves in his poems, and we are the better for it."
--Edison Jennings, author of Intentional Fallacies
"Warren Harris's soul-enlarging, highly perceptive collection reflects a self-less approach to life witnessed at 'eighty miles an hour.' . . . Harris offers the reader poetic insight into true accompaniment: someone with whom to contemplate and give thanks. For that and more, we are indeed grateful!"
--Sofia M. Starnes, Virginia Poet Laureate, Emerita
"Warren writes with great insight and gives us beautiful poems that reflect a lifetime of kindness and a desire to help others find meaning in their life's. Read Warren and touch the soul of a distinguished kind poet."
--Henry McCarthy, Host, Poets and Writers, WEHC 90.7 Emory, Virginia