Book description
Sarah Carey's debut poetry collection, The Grief Committee Minutes, is a lyrical exploration of loss, memory, and environmental and human connections. This thoughtfully curated volume takes readers through the landscapes of grief, offering insights into how we process pain, honor lost people and places, and find strength to move forward.At the heart of Carey's work is a deep engagement with the natural world, particularly the flora and fauna of northern Florida, where she grew up. Birds feature prominently, serving as metaphors for freedom, fragility, and life's ephemeral nature. These avian images provide a through-line that connects the various themes of the book, from personal loss to broader societal concerns, mirroring the speaker's poetic record.Moving seamlessly between past and present, the poems in this collection often begin with contemporary observations before spiraling into memory. This creates a rich tapestry of experience, highlighting how our past informs our present and exploring grief's long-reaching effects on our perceptions and interactions.With a voice that speaks directly to the human experience, Carey's poems mirror our own lives. Whether delving into the complexities of parent-child relationships, the isolating effects of the pandemic, or the subtle shifts of aging, her work resonates universally, inviting readers to find solace in the recognition of their own experiences within her carefully chosen words.The poems in this collection tackle complex subjects like war, environmental degradation, and cultural memory loss with sensitivity and insight. The Grief Committee Minutes is an intimate portrait of individual sorrow and a broader meditation on collective grief, including the shared experience of watching familiar landscapes change.While the poems in this collection never shy away from the raw pain of grief, they also point us toward the transformative potential of loss. They suggest that even in the face of profound sorrow, we can deepen our empathy, strengthen our connections, and heighten our appreciation for life's fleeting joys, offering a glimmer of hope in the darkest of times.The Grief Committee Minutes is not just a collection of poems, but a carefully structured journey through the stages of grief, from the initial shock to the eventual healing and reintegration. Its thoughtful arrangement creates a sense of progression, while individual poems circle back to recurring themes and images, much like the cyclical nature of memory and loss, guiding the reader through a deeply engaging and introspective experience.
About the Author
Sarah Carey is a North Carolina native who grew up in Florida and has spent most of her life there. She attended Duke University and Florida State University, where she received a master's degree in English with a creative writing concentration. Her work has appeared in numerous journals, including Gulf Coast, Five Points, Rattle, Florida Review, Atlanta Review, and elsewhere. Sarah is the author of two poetry chapbooks, including Accommodations, winner of the 2018 Concrete Wolf Chapbook Award, (Concrete Wolf Poetry Series, 2019) and The Heart Contracts, (Finishing Line Press, 2016.) She has worked in journalism and public relations for her entire professional career, including over 30 years as director of communications for the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, and has amassed numerous honors and awards for her writing. She lives in Gainesville with her husband and a big black Lab.
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Playing a wide variety of audio formats
Works on all devices with iOS 13 and newer
Huge amount of features for a small price
Frequent updates to add new features and improve existing ones
Advanced playback controls
Live sound processing
Changing the timbre of the reader's voice and noise reduction
Translated into more than 20 languages
If you love listening to fiction audiobooks, ListenBook has features to make the process easier.
Edit book data: title, author, cover
Use equalizer to make the sound comfortable for you
Adjust the playback speed
Enjoy dark and light app themes
Supported formats: MP3, M4B, AWB, FLAC, OGG audio files and many more (must be DRM free)
Auto-Bookmarks make it easy to find your place
AirPlay support allows redirection of audio output.
VoiceOver support
Dark mode for night owls
Convenient bookmarking system helps you mark the most important places.
Unlimited bookmarks for each audiobook
Put your own cover on the wager
Share your audiobook with friends
Lock-screen control
Customise app with extensive options
Sleep timer with shake to reset, set custom notification sounds, and a few unique options
Auto rewind depending on paused time, customize rewind times to your liking
Removing background noise from recordings made in classrooms and meetings
Changing the timbre of the reader's voice for a better listening experience