Bone Fragments

"Whitman wrote "who touches this book touches a man." When we pick up Rick Christiansen's powerful and elegant Bone Fragments, we also touch a man's history and character. The poems are shaped by Christiansen's life, his alcoholic, abusive mother, the younger brother he stole groceries to feed, and now, his relationship with the much-loved grandson he is raising. Bone Fragments does not shy away from human beings at their worst-the poems address, unsparingly, neglect and abuse, but Christia...