by Emily Ferrara (Author)
Poetry. Translated from the Italian by Sabine Pascarelli. Winner of the 2007 Bordighera Poetry Prize, Emily Ferrara's THE ALCHEMY OF GRIEF sings in the music of line with deep emotion from a mother's heart and a journey of transformation. THE ALCHEMY OF GRIEF shows Ferrara's ability as a healer through the beauty of her language. This is excellently controlled craftsmanship, conveying deeply felt emotion. The grief of loss is sharply poignant and real, yet never maudlin or self-indulgent. The music of the lines is subtle and fine. The tension between the controlled craft and the poignancy of the theme makes the reader participate in the poems and feel with the poet, sharing the human despair and transcendent emotions that bring us through to survive -Daniela Gioseffi.