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This exquisitely crafted edition presents five new poems by Mary Ruefle, one of contemporary poetry’s most singular voices—known for her playful imagery, surprising leaps, and quietly expansive reflections on the ordinary and the uncanny. Printed by Center for Book Arts in New York, this special chapbook is as much an art object as a collection of poems.
Designed as a five-sided book, the structure itself becomes part of the meaning: the unique format invites the reader to move around the object, to turn it in hand, to engage with the space of the book in a tactile, almost sculptural way. The hand-set type (Consort and Bernhard) and printed collograph images on Colorplan paper give the edition a rich visual and haptic presence. The sewn-board binding by Ana Paula Cordeiro completes the limited, collectible form.
Inside, Ruefle’s poems unfold with the quiet astonishment her readers expect—moments of everyday life refracted through odd angles, languages of memory and objecthood rendered in lines that surprise the reader into attention. The physical form mirrors the poetic sensibility: both invite discovery, reflection, and return.
For lovers of fine-press book arts and serious poetry alike, FIVE POEMS is a rare hybrid: a collectible object and a profound literary experience. The limited nature of the edition, its intricate physical design, and the pedigree of Mary Ruefle’s work make it a standout addition to any poet-book shelf.