SunZero Earth

Schenck imbues this collection of poems with all the insults and injuries and exaltations peculiar to any archdruid suffering these times. And yet through the unmatched ferocity and honesty of his poetic vision he transcends them and the mossy limitations of naturalist poetry.

In the crucible of his experience an exceptional intelligence continues to glow: a penetrating insight into myth, nature, philosophy, political intrigues, personal sacrifice, psychic torment and the triumphant soul. His mercurial illumination of all things under the sun and among the stars dances between a dark radiance to a blinding arc and back again. His brilliant wordplay and striking imagery reflect the contrary and fractious urges of a heart too big to fail, and his voice-at times lyrical and tumultuous, sweet and sibilant-consistently evokes the poignant song of a single tree who has never stopped dreaming aloud of being an unconquerable forest.

• Brian Lee Knopp, Author of Mayhem in Mayberry: Misadventures of a P.I. in Southern Appalachia.