Song of Six Rivers

Song of Six Rivers relates one man's life-changing experiences throughout the Humboldt Bay region of northern California, depicting the area's geography and history along the way, through both poetry and archival photography. When the muse of this epic poem, Guy Kuttner, died unexpectedly, Zev Levinson heard his voice imploring him to sing of the land they both love. As a roving teacher of poetry in the schools, often staying in far-flung places, Zev had come to know the Six Rivers terrain and communities intimately. He put his pen to the task of meeting Guy's daunting challenge, confronting mortality and loss as he ventured to understand our connection to earth. At its heart, this endeavor strives to weave poetry into the everyday lives of those who dwell behind the redwood curtain.

Literature & Fiction

Levinson, Zev

Poetry

Humboldt State University Press and Sequoiasong Publications

Song of Six Rivers is an epic poem memorializing the Humboldt Bay/Six Rivers region of northern California. Taking a bioregional approach to the geography and history of the Humboldt environs, the poem addresses why we are here on earth as human beings and, more personally, addresses the author’s own journey as a poet and teacher of poetry. In the poem, Zev’s friend Guy Kuttner, an educator and activist who passed away in 2011, speaks to the author from the beyond, instructing him to sing of the land where they worked and spent time together. As the poem explores mortality, it also confronts the death of Zev’s father who passed away when Zev was fourteen; he was a professor, cantor, author, and community leader. Other characters appear as well, contributing to the narrative and local color. While Jim Dodge and Jerry Martien are not mentioned by name, as Zev’s friends, colleagues, and mentors they appear—in the company of others—as the “old poets” who have inspired the author’s work and life. Jim was generous enough to work on this poem with the author.

Phillips, CM

Schumann, Ashley

Humboldt State University Press

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Books by Levinson, Zev