Out of Venus's "astonished torso," rises an unsparing consummation of loss - "the scent of cedar, /the map that answers long-asked questions..." Galloway blesses death's "dark horizon" not with a singular name, but with the blushed patina of "skin and story" fleshing out love's ubiquitous fragility. Maureen Alsop, author of Apparition Wren and The Diction of Moths Ekphrasis, myth, childhood, and the larger history of our times are all skillfully blended in these poems that combine a strong lyric gift with craft and narrative invention. Lucia Galloway's Venus and Other Losses would be a fine addition to any poetry collection. Richard Garcia, author of Rancho Notorious and The Persistence of Objects, BOA Editions In "Bending Water," Lucia Galloway, in the guise of a 9th century Japanese woman, writes "My pen...must sing/So that my poem will welcome/Floating bird, cup of sake." Galloway's pen sings clear as a bell throughout this collection, and the poems that issue forth are welcoming, indeed--they embrace every aspect of life, from seed to bare branch. They also embrace every aspect of form; Galloway slips between sonnet and free verse and hymn meter with masterful fluidity, playing expertly with persona and time period, mining art and music and literature and nature for inspiration, along with deeply personal experience and memory. These are poems born of curiosity, of bewilderment, of wonder; while they plumb the pain of loss, they also celebrate the sheer amazement of being. With Venus and Other Losses, we have found a most singular voice, even within its stunning multiplicity. Gayle Brandeis, author of Self Storage, The Book of Dead Birds, and Fruitflesh: Seeds of Inspiration for Women Who Write