The poet,
Ben Yakir Li
“Spanning the chasm between hurt and healing, darkness and faith, clamor and calm, crossing the divide between loss and growth, heartache and hope--that's what I mean by the symbol of the the bridge. There it stands, from one generation separated into the next, a passage high above the abyss, at a remove from what lay behind toward what comes next.”
A Bridge is More Magnificent Than Any Tower
A work of elegance and power all at once, this debut volume presents a new voice and a new force in poetry. Ben Yakir Li's artistry is born in the confrontation and surmounting of trauma and struggle, ultimately and courageously revealing the poignant beauty in the mundane and miraculous. His writing is grounded in tradition, but original, a seer whose redemptive words are an antidote to our times. Intimate, playful, meditative, and uplifting, the poems in this work demand attention, penetrating with wisdom and driving toward healing, introducing readers to an artist who will endure.