Environmental anxiety permeates the collection, and many poems stand witness to the tragedy of what is unfolding, though there is the possibility for redemption.
The poems invite the reader to wonder about their role in the writing of our future. Is our participation going to be heroic or tragic? Are we the masters of our own fate or were we charmed, like Macbeth? What the ‘be-all and the end-all’ will look like is still up to us.
Matthew James Friday is a British born writer, professional storyteller and public school teacher. He has had many poems published in U.S. and international journals from all corners of the world. He has published numerous micro-chapbooks with the Origami Poems Project. Matthew is a Pushcart Prize nominated poet. His first chapbook The Residents was published by Finishing Line Press. The Be-All and the End-All is his second chapbook. More of his writing can be found at: matthewfriday.weebly.com.
“We have been honored to publish Matthew Friday‘s poetry. So I am delighted to celebrate this chapbook of his poems—rich in imagery, voice, and a delightful playfulness with language. The poems connect the conscious mind with the heart.”
~Kimberly Hill Campbell, Editor of Oregon English Journal Review for his previous book, The Residents:
“The Residents challenges me to look into the world and to realize that I’m connected to it. With depth and weight, Friday’s lyrics exalt the ordinary natural world into something I can grapple and hum with. The Residents is a subtle hurricane of poems that illuminate the mysteries and paradoxes we all might experience while getting a haircut or visiting a pumpkin field, wondering why. Friday writes from a place high above, encompassing all that the land has to offer, yet not so high that he misses pumpkin seeds, hummingbirds, and Easter eggs. These poems are offerings my soul gladly accepts. I’ve been a reader of Matthew’s poetry for years, and this collection is his best yet.”
~Mike Leyland, School Library Media coordinator, Craven County Schools.
“Matthew’s collection of poetry, The Residents, connects the reader with the beauty and power of the natural world, the strangeness of modern life and our alternately sweet or disconnected fellow human beings. He writes with empathy and self-awareness of all he encounters, finding poetic elements in the smallest gestures and actions, as well as the ancient forces of the planet that will outlast us and our temporary dramas. Desperate migrants, unfair privilege, flying birds, rushing water, random hardship, bureaucratic paperwork, a child’s joy in jumping in puddles, unexpected connections between people from different parts of the world—all combine to capture the imagination and stimulate recognition of our shared humanity. Classical literary and mythological references flow through the observations of physics and earth science juxtaposed with human actions, both positive and negative, that in the end are only momentary. Above all, Matthew’s words capture fleeting moments that make life more beautiful in the midst of our current world.”
~Vivienne Blake, Librarian, EF Academy New York