Interstate

Interstate by Douglas Cole features a stunning cover photo of the South Satiam River in Oregon, taken by Tracey and Sarah Hiser, printed on creamy cardstock with an olive cardstock insert. The chapbook contains 32 pages of 18 poems, printed on soft white paper matching the cover cardstock. Of the poems in this book, David Bates, editor of My Favorite Bullet, says: "The poetic institution that nature's elemental beauty somehow trumps humanity's complexity in meaning is an exploding myth. Interstate takes us on a "blind drive" into the emotional geography of the American Northwest, where nature continues to recover from it's own volcanic self-destruction. Cole's journey--in his car, in motel rooms, in campgrounds--initially seems a final grab at the idea that there is simple reason in the mountain, and simply chaos in the city. But this conceit fails to his credit. Anxiety and tranquility are not mutually exclusive. And the black highway between the two is where these poems live." Through poems like "Map of the Cascades", "All Rivers Are One", "Indian River", and "Holy River Gorge", Cole takes us on a trip of discovery across the interstates of road, river, and reflection. And believe me, this is one trip you won't want to miss. Curtis Harrell, poetry editor of VISIONS, a Journal of the Arts, says "Douglas Cole's crystalline images propel his poetry down the page like water flowing down a fountain."