THE ROOTS OF APPLES by Jane Beal, PhD

THE ROOTS OF APPLES

poems

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Singing out a LOVE-SONG

In November, I began writing LOVE-SONG, a collection of lyric and ekphrastic poems inspired in part by the paintings of Chagall, Dalí, Picasso, Rembrandt, and Vermeer. I enjoyed experimenting with the intersection of sound, word, and image, creating an MP4 version of each poem read aloud, paired with an image, and set to music. These recordings can be enjoyed at the home of the LOVE-SONG.

Now the collection has been published in a chapbook printed by Lulu Press. Here are some of the kind things that have been said about the poems by a poet, a songwriter, and a painter:

“This collection is an absolute gem, suffused with a rare combination of faith, surrealism, and delicate yearning.” ~ Adrienne Odasso, poet and author of Devil’s Road Down

“Jane Beal writes beautifully, integrating body and mind, sorrow and joyfulness. In these poems, she is immersed deep within a river of dreams. Bird-like above, as her own words describe, she is ‘singing to the Autumn sky.'” ~ Robert Deeble, songwriter

“Jane is a completely honest and sincere writer … Her voice is just what is needed to make the words clear … The music choices, photographs, and paintings inspire and illuminate. They are very well chosen, elegant–almost delicate–and spare enough not to overwhelm the details of the words.” ~ Janice Skivington, fine art painter and illustrator

I hope you enjoy my LOVE-SONG … and if you wish to purchase a copy of the new chapbook, please visit LOVE-SONG at LULU PRESS.

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EIGHT STORIES FROM UNDISCOVERED COUNTRIES

Jane’s new collection of fantasy stories is now available from Lulu press! Eight Stories from Undiscovered Countries includes the genres of fairy tale, allegory, magical realism, folk-tale, short fiction, fantasy, and medieval romance. In each of Jane’s stories, discovery and adventure await the young imagination!

The stories treat important themes: a child’s need to be loved (even when he is imperfect!), the possibility of moving ahead even when abandoned by friends, the urgency of the needs of those living in poverty and our responsibility to share generously with the rest of the world, the healing journey of the soul after the experience of childhood trauma, new life after death, how to love honorably, and the unexpected adventures a young knight experiences in his life.

Undiscovered Countries is a book that will be read profitably by tweens and teens, but it can be enjoyed by readers of all ages. Copies are available from Lulu Press in paperback or download form. Just click below and visit:

Eight Stories from Undiscovered Countries at Lulu Press!

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MADE IN THE IMAGE is now available!!!

Jane’s new collection of poetry, MADE IN THE IMAGE, is now available from Lulu Press!! Here is what three readers have to say in praise of the poems in this book:

“Jane Beal has the gift of tongues. She speaks in many voices: with the whispered wish for water in the wasteland; the yearnings of Yeats; the ecstasy of St Teresa; the chaste eroticism of the Song of Songs. She speaks in many voices but always with the One Voice that conveys the unity of meaning through the poet’s polyphony.”

~ Joseph Pearce, author of Divining Divinity (www.staustinreview.com)

“Jane Beal takes you on exquisite journeys to the mountains of love just as poignantly as trips taken to the underground of human behavior. She is a modern day psalmist.
”

~ Yolanda Calderon-Horn, author of Step Out of Weeping Shoes (lopsidepress.com/gallery)

“These poems move from the painful terrain of women’s mistreatment through the ages and all over the world to an ecstatic vision of 
humanity as made in God’s image. Beal’s poetry bears witness to suffering from a compassionate and devotional place. As she says in “Psalm”: ‘All my longings lie open before You.’ As a reader, my longings are laid open by her work.”

~ Marie-Elizabeth Mali, editor of The Book of the Villanelle (www.floweringlotus.com)

You are invited to preview the book at MADE IN THE IMAGE at Lulu Press!

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