A Hidden River

A Hidden River is a collection of stories and poems dealing with the themes of humanity’s assault on its environment and on itself. After long years of federal service, the writer returned to California and found it overrun with industrial, defense and residential development and obsessed with violence. He responded to this condition with poems of fantastic revenge, nostalgia and sorrow, such as “Plum Valley --- Joaquin and Me,” “Apricot,” and “Red Cadillac.” Some stories and poems also deal with our society’s violent disregard for human civility and the continuing presence of violence against other human societies. These would include “The Amazing Death of J. J. Finkelstein” and “An Ode to My Mexican Pot.” Any country willing to kill or disparage its own will certainly not stop at mauling others. “The War Bird” and “Mars, 2003” are poems of dread, anticipating prolonged, exploitative war. Pax Vobiscum.