{"product_id":"path-crooked-path-paperback","title":"Path, Crooked Path - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eJohn Balaban\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Balaban's emotional range is impressively wide and deeply human--by turns compassionate and angry, somber and humorous, earnest and ironic. His voice is strong; his poems are important.\"--\u003ci\u003eHarvard Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGuided by an acute moral urgency, \u003ci\u003ePath, Crooked Path\u003c\/i\u003e opens on Highway 61 and keeps moving across America and throughout the world. Juxtaposing his experiences in eastern Europe and southeast Asia against contemporary life in the United States, Balaban illuminates the humor and hypocrisy that often percolates when individuals are thrust into the mix of cultures. Whether driving past Bush's Texas ranch, sitting at a caf  in Vietnam, or trading swigs of vodka with a Bulgarian exile, his poems look beyond the personal to help make sense of an often chaotic world.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFrom \"The Great Fugue\"\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e...I am playing\u003c\/i\u003e The Grosse Fugue, \u003ci\u003ehearing\u003cbr\u003e the faded voices of those good people\u003cbr\u003e who did not want to see me falter, but took me in, \u003cbr\u003e schooling me in an intertwining of spirits\u003cbr\u003e that like music can fill a room, that is a great fugue\u003cbr\u003e weaving through us and joining generations\u003cbr\u003e in charged, exquisite music that we long to hear.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eJohn Balaban\u003c\/b\u003e is the author of a dozen books of poetry, prose, and Vietnamese translations whose accolades include two National Book Award nominations, the Lamont Award, and the William Carlos Williams Award. His translation \u003ci\u003eSpring Essence: The Poetry of Ho Xuan Huong\u003c\/i\u003e was featured on NPR's \u003ci\u003eFresh Air\u003c\/i\u003e. Balaban teaches at North Carolina State University and lives in Raleigh.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eJohn Balaban is the author of a dozen books of poetry, prose, and Vietnamese translations whose prizes include the Lamont Award, the William Carlos Williams Award, and two National Book Award nominations. His work has been featured on NPR's Fresh Air, New York Times, and Utne Reader. He teaches at North Carolina State University.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 77\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.28 x 9 x 6.56 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e May 01, 2006\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAward:\u003c\/strong\u003e Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize (2007)\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42167414653063,"sku":"9781556592386","price":15.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0601\/2623\/2711\/files\/9b3916fd48499a5cfce47b79e8fc010a.webp?v=1733327481","url":"https:\/\/booksby.splitshops.com\/products\/path-crooked-path-paperback","provider":"Books by splitShops","version":"1.0","type":"link"}