All things, seen and unseen

the long version

With clarity and precise detail, Dan Masterson creates a narrative of how we live, love, and die. In blank verse and rhymed stanzas, in free verse and taut lyrics, he delivers the story of a woman trapped in an avalanche, a husband daring himself to death in an ocean swim, or a son arranging the final affairs of his parents. There is always an edge to Masterson's characters - they are everyday people, but we meet them on the one day when the stakes are highest. Selected from thirty years of work, and including an eclectic selection of new poems, this book unfurls Masterson's full canvas of abilities: his penchant for startling descriptions, his keen insight into our nobility and fallibility, and his skill at making us live his poems.