Facets (paperback)

    In her first published book of poetry, Julyn S. Pride has created an artistic collection of poems and photography about the people and places of New England. The short vignettes and stories describe in beautiful detail poems on motherhood, aging and nature and the joys and losses of our faceted lives. The 45 black and white photos chosen as a visual embodiment of the poems reflect the seasonal New England landscape, but especially that of Connecticut.

    Facets is a concept collection she has termed homespun poetry because it gathers the warmth of family, history, and generational presence in New England. It is a concept because it is written in sections that reflect some facets of the chosen 'chapter.'  The work is interconnected and flows through a natural passage of life experiences. All the poems come from the New England landscape, but especially that of Connecticut. Several use Tolland, Connecticut as a backdrop for place and perspective. The topography of Tolland is filled with rolling hills. There are marshes, rivers and lakes and  forested trails and parks. It is also a place of farms, some that have been in the town since it was settled in 1715.

    A collector of local lore and history and the mysteries our stonewalls and shaded forests guard, several of the pieces explore those mysteries and puzzlements of the New England region. Poems such as 'The Weeds' and 'Evening Song of the Leatherman' are two in particular that call upon facts and use creative imagination to convey the story. They both touch upon love and friendship as well as a personal relationship with God, honor, and glory. Facets is primarily about love, though; not the kind of romantic love that most people think of, but the many facets that love encompasses. There is the love of nature; love of family; love of childhood; love of pets; love of friendship, and responsible love as our parent's age and we become the parent to them.

    Her poems are written primarily in a conversational way, with a mixture of classic rhyming and free verse. Set against a backdrop of beaches, mountains, lakes and woodlands, she has combined the art of poetry with the art of photography.