What if many desirable things in nature were no longer there?—clean air, freshly grown vegetables, wildflowers, a waterfall, a green forest, spring rains, colors of flowers, a willow tree, fresh trout from a stream, autumn leaves, sunrise, sunset, mineral-rich farmland, etc. What if in a few years global warming and its devasting effects so damaged the earth, its atmosphere, and its resources, that many of these things were no longer possible? These poems address openly both the sorrows we face with forces that destroy nature and the things we celebrate in nature that provide much of humankind’s joy and sustenance. Some may ask appropriately, “What difference can a poet’s words make in correcting the paths of nature’s destruction down which humankind is traveling?” Certainly, words alone cannot save nature. Perhaps poetry can help to shape a new understanding of human failure, as well as to shape new visions of hope for the nature we know and are ever discovering.

More than a devotional, these reflections by my lifelong friend and associate Tony Owens will inspire and motivate the reader on their daily journey. Tony has experienced the ups and downs of life and has wonderfully captured his emotions within these pages. He reminds us that we're not alone, and to keep 'fighting the good fight' as he has certainly done and continues to do so to this day. --Brad W. Hoover, MD Regional Medical Director, Emergency Departments Nashville, Tennessee Thank goodness for those who taught me to take a few minutes in the morning to get centered. Just a few minutes contemplating something other than my own incessant mental chatter gets the day going so much better. Over time there have been little nuggets of insight that over time have helped make things in my life better beyond my wildest dreams. I am so grateful Tony shared this collection with me. I've found insight, encouragement and wisdom in these pages. I was looking for nuggets and found a gold mine. I encourage anyone to use this daily. --Sam H., person in longtime recovery

The moth snowstorm, a phenomenon Michael McCarthy remembers from his boyhood when moths “would pack a car’s headlight beams like snowflakes in a blizzard,” is a distant memory. Wildlife is being lost, not only in the wholesale extinctions of species but also in the dwindling of those species that still exist. The Moth Snowstorm is unlike any other book about climate change today; combining the personal with the polemical, it is a manifesto rooted in experience, a poignant memoir of the author’s first love: nature. McCarthy traces his adoration of the natural world to when he was seven, when the discovery of butterflies and birds brought sudden joy to a boy whose mother had just been hospitalized and whose family life was deteriorating. He goes on to record in painful detail the rapid dissolution of nature’s abundance in the intervening decades, and he proposes a radical solution to our current problem: that we each recognize in ourselves the capacity to love the natural world. Arguing that neither sustainable development nor ecosystem services have provided adequate defense against pollution, habitat destruction, species degradation, and climate change, McCarthy asks us to consider nature as an intrinsic good and an emotional and spiritual resource, capable of inspiring joy, wonder, and even love. An award-winning environmental journalist, McCarthy presents a clear, well-documented picture of what he calls “the great thinning” around the world, while interweaving the story of his own early discovery of the wilderness and a childhood saved by nature. Drawing on the truths of poets, the studies of scientists, and the author’s long experience in the field, The Moth Snowstorm is part elegy, part ode, and part argument, resulting in a passionate call to action.

There has been a huge revival of interest in Victorian women's poetry in the last ten years, and it has led to a major reconfiguration of the English poetic landscape of the nineteenth century. This title offers a key selection of poems by 13 Victorian women poets from Christina Rosetti and Felicia Hemans to the witty, iconoclastic May Kendall. The book starts with a substantial general Introduction which places the work of the poets into a context both historical (that of the poems' production) and modern (that of their past and present reception). Each poet's work is introduced by an expansive headnote which tells the story of her life and writing career. The poems all have full explanatory notes to help readers unfamiliar with the period. A Bibliography lists general sources as well as useful further readings. Written in an engaging and accessible manner, the extensive annotations throughout Victorian Women Poets ensure that this fascinating poetry is enjoyable for undergraduate and non-specialist readers.