Coast to Coast

Joseph Murphy’s Coast to Coast is a remembrance of early manhood and the boyhood from which it took shape. Rather than surrendering to nostalgia, however, the poems show us scenes as if in a series of postcards from the past, and not only of the most beautiful scenes but also of moments of self-doubt and uncertainty along the path of maturation. Out of his wanderings and explorations, a deep connection with place emerges, two specific places: Mendocino, CA, and Martha’s Vineyard, MA, two coasts linked through the boy to the man. Perhaps there’s a little bit of Thoreau here, perhaps a little bit of Robinson Jeffers, walking the beaches (on both coasts), scrambling a steep path through redwoods, rolling a sleeping bag out in a field where “We gathered driftwood and watercress, / dozing in the sun.” But there are hazards along the path, too, where “Even a small rift / can shadow one’s pace, breath; augur / a larger breach.” These poems carry us with them, and we enjoy and learn from the journey and its discoveries. — Jeffrey Franklin, author of Where To Lay Down, https://www.jeffreyfranklin.com