Death has a habit of always making sure it’s close by. It waits in the wings for its cue to take to the stage and deliver a killer performance…you never know if this will be your last show, your moment in the spotlight. As they say; break a leg…
Today on the blog I am reviewing Every time you die (October 31, 2019) By Erik Fuhrer. A big thank you to the publishers Alien Buddha Press for my copy to review, always appreciated.
About The Author
Erik Fuhrer is the author of 4 books of poetry, with a 5th forthcoming from Spuyten Duyvil Press at the end of 2020. He lives in Indiana with his wife, and dog Moops. He occasionally dabbles in flash fiction and is writing a novel which features bigfoot as one of the main characters.
Every time you die
‘ This new collection by Erik Fuhrer is as the title suggests – it deals with death. Ironically, what makes this collection truly unique is that each relatively short poem is fully alive, vibrant and possesses a cathartic power that is both personal and universal. Here is a poet who is a master of metaphor and creates lucid narratives that are layered with complexities that capture an inspired fusion of loss and enlightenment.’
– Kevin Pilkington, Author of Where You Want to Be: New and Selected Poems.
My Review
Fuhrer’s poems are overflowing with emotion that drenches the reader in his creativity. There was a vast amount of imagery that enraptured me and allowed me to get lost in Fuhrer’s underworld.
The heavy burden of loss is captured strikingly throughout. Fuhrer uses metaphors and visuals to create what others often miss. In flash of egg white he tells of the experience of being told a loved one is gone, how the mouth is already shredding into scars. It’s shocking and tragic to read as this is the reality of life. We are born and then we die. It is inevitable. But that doesn’t make it any easier to deal with. Grief takes us all differently and there is no right or wrong way. The range of emotions that we experience lead us blindly through a maze of confusion, anger, regret, heartache, we encounter them all until we reach the centre and everything becomes clear. We now know what we must do in order to move forward in the right direction.
Fuhrer has arranged his poems on the page in a way that shows the reader how the mind can stumble, fall and then quickly put itself back together again after a bereavement. His words move about on the page and you feel the sorrow that these poems paint. It’s relatable as you can’t help but feel a little dazed reading the words tumble around, reflecting one’s mental state at such a sad time. It’s intriguing as we take a look into the mind of grief in all its complicated unstructured form.
My heart broke reading at dawn. The image of feeding apples to the stream as the departed now belongs to it had me in tears. These poems are personal and at times I felt intrusive to these memories. I was a mess and could relate to wishing to feel connected again to the ones that are now gone. Fuhrer keeps their memories alive by remembering and seeing them briefly in the day to day. It’s comforting and peaceful.
I give Every time you die By Erik Fuhrer a Three out of Five paw rating.
A difficult and powerful read about death and the emotions we succumb to in its wake. Fuhrer is a visionary with words and captures you from the moment you begin reading. He leaves you feeling saddened but hopeful that somewhere, somehow the deceased are never truly gone.
Links
Buy a copy 
@ErikFuhrer
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