The Book of Moss: Poems by Benjamin Saltman

Literature & Fiction

Saltman, Benjamin

Poetry

Garden Street Pr

"The Book of Moss" is a collection of poems, first published by Garden Street Press in 1992; this current edition includes all of the poems in the original edition plus 33 unpublished and hitherto uncollected poems.Benjamin Saltman was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1927. He began writing poetry seriously in 1965. Blue With Blue, his first book of poems, published by Lillabulero Press, appeared in 1968. Since then he published seven other books: The Leaves The People, Red Hill Press, 1977; Elegies Of Place, Armchair Press, 1977; Deck, Ithaca House, 1979; Five Poems, Santa Susana Press, 1989; The Book Of Moss, 1992, Garden Street Press; The Sun Takes Us Away: New And Selected Poems, Red Hen Press, 1996; and Sleep And Death The Dream, published posthumously by Red Hen Press, 1999. This marks his tenth book of verse. W.S. Merwin said of him: "Benjamin Saltman is a fine poet, a genuine one, which is saying a great deal, because I think that at anytime there is a lot of showy performance and no so much of always rather surprising welling up of the source itself. Lovely plainness, apparent plainness, with that depth beyond it."The book was edited by former student, Nicholas Campbell.Praise for The Book of Moss:"These poems are wonderfully restless, always in a hurry. Benjamin Saltman can make waxing the car or just sitting in a 'cool place' a sort of sports event for the mind. Yet the poems close firmly, some about the Poet Self, some with humor and sadness about Us. Here are the lonely but warm observations of an exceptional talent: a fine collection."Reed Whittemore"Benjamin Saltman is among the most graceful and gentle poets living in Los Angeles or anywhere. I’m very glad to see this collection which contains many poems I’ve admired for years and new prizes as well."James Krusoe, Santa Monica Review"Everyone who knows Ben Saltman comments on his rare and humble sensibility; indeed, this is the quality that leaps off the page. Saltman notices details as if he had been gone for a long time and returned to a strange sad planet that he still loves. There is something else to love and that is [Saltman’s] stately acceptance of the passage of time, as he 'lengthen(s) toward sleep.' In the first poem of the collection, 'Myself As A House,' Saltman writes, 'Please convince me that holding on/is as good as flying,' and after you close the book it seems as though Saltman has done both."Susan Salter Reynolds, Los Angeles Times, August 30th, 1993, Review of the First Edition of The Book of Moss

The Book Of Moss

Campbell, Nicholas

CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

The memoir chronicles poet Saltman's life from 1930s Pittsburgh and his travels and time spent in Chicago, New Orleans, Denver, where he lived for four years, San Francisco during the 1950s when Ferlinghetti was charged with selling pornography through his City Lights Bookstore when he published Allen Ginsburg's "Howl," and Saltman's college experience teaching at Sierra College in Auburn, California; at Emerson's "Kookie College," in Pacific Grove, California, an early experimental college during the early to mid-1960s, and Saltman's time spent at Claremont University Graduate School where he earned his P.h.D and befriended poet Bert Meyers. The work also chronicles his tenure at California State University, Northridge, where he taught Verse Writing and Contemporary American Literature for over 25 years, and commentary on his own work as a poet. Saltman was the recipient of two NEA Fellowships and many other awards for excellence. W.S. Merwin has this to say about Saltman's work as a poet: "Benjamin Saltman is a fine poet, a genuine one, which is saying a great deal, because I think that at anytime there is a lot of showy performance and not so much of always rather surprising welling up of the source itself. Lovely plainness, apparent plainess, with that depth beyond it." Praise for "The Book of Moss," published also by Phoenix Press: "[Saltman's] poems are wonderfully restless, always in a hurry. Benjamin Saltman can make waxing the car or just sitting in a 'cool place' a sort of sports event for the mind. Yet the poems close firmly, some about the Poet Self, some with humor and sadness about Us. Here are the lonely but warm observations of an exceptional talent: a fine collection." Reed Whittemore

A Termite Memoir

A new collection of poems, some old, some never before published and that also features an essay about the imagination and a selection of letters.

California Beige: Poems & Other Writings

Essays & Correspondence

Independently published

Ben Saltman's eleventh book of verse. These are the uncollected poems that includes a section of his essays on poetry and an article he wrote about his friend, poet Bert Meyers whom he befriended during the 1960s. This book offers over sixty poems and two essays on poetry. A must have for any reader who loves the poetry of Benjamin Saltman.

Alone With Everyone: The Uncollected Poems