Wilt or Stray
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I am incredibly lucky --
even this haze knows it
even my useless gaze says so
in every way.
To be where I am now
living like this
is like cherries on a branch.
In fact I’m not nearly grateful enough
for this mud and for its reasons.
Not thankful enough for fences down
or kinked hoses.
No I don’t deserve porches.
In fact I need to tip my hat in love and honor
to every buzzing swarm that’s coming at me
to every wilt or stray.
And I should also surely thank my lucky stars
my blessings
for what last night had its way
with the row of beans out back
in the garden.​
This Much Very
This Much Very by Hiram Larew invites you to stretch beyond the expected. This is poetry where the familiar is wrapped in something strange and the strange becomes a doorway into something unpredictable.
Larew’s verses whisper, sing, and sometimes shout, all while pulling you deeper into the rhythm of their peculiar charm. The themes here—connection, time, longing—are explored with a light poetic touch.
The language in this chapbook bends and curls in ways that feel at once new and timeless, with just a twist of phrase. Whether you’re a lover of lyrical puzzles, a seeker of quiet epiphanies, or someone who enjoys words for the pure joy of how they sound together,
This Much Very will speak to you.
What people are saying...​
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"Would you choose to be a torch-trumpeted cloud or march for the moon’s glowing? Do you believe in wonder? Then come soft barely into Hiram Larew’s This Much Very and go larking all loop-de-loop with him on this soul-searching ars poetica, this moving quest for love."
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Terry Bohnhorst Blackhawk,
One Less River
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"...a fascinating interplay of words—brought together as unpredictable partners—in embracing dances of self-discovery."
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Noel Paul Stookey (Peter, Paul and Mary)