Men, Women and Ghosts

This collection gathers a lively mix of narrative poems, scene‑like vignettes, and pieces that let clouds, streets and even a violin become characters in their own right. Lowell explores the fluid possibilities of free verse, treating rhythm as a musical instrument that can echo the glide of a shuttlecock or the pulse of a Stravinsky quartet. The essays in the preface explain how “polyphonic prose” lets the spoken word shift shape, giving each poem a theatrical immediacy without abandoning its poetic roots.

Readers will wander through gardens that move in circles, a Cremona violin that sings on the page, and an aquarium rendered in swirling, untethered patterns. The work also touches the lingering atmosphere of a world at war, using subtle hints rather than direct reportage. With each turn, the listener discovers new textures of colour, light and sound, inviting the imagination to hear poetry as if it were a living, ever‑changing composition.