Memento Mori - by Charles Coe (Paperback)

About the Book

Memento Mori is a meditation on mortality, change and loss, by turns somber, thoughtful and humorous.

Book Synopsis

Memento Mori is a meditation on mortality, change and loss. Rather than being simply somber, this volume observes our human condition through a poetic kaleidoscope, with glimpses of irony and humor that offer a refreshing contrast to the more difficult moments. Coe is a storyteller who writes with compassion, insight and a razor-sharp eye for detail.

Review Quotes

Praise for "All Sins Forgiven"

"Reading these remarkable poems is like the shadowed, soul-affirming joy of discovering old family photographs in a worn grocery bag in your attic; yes, I am here in this body on this earth because of them, this man and woman who loved and lived and did the best they knew how to do, even if it did not always seem like quite enough at the time.... A deeply evocative and loving rendering of Charles Coe's persevering mother and father. This book does what art is supposed to do; it delivers to the reader his or her own stumbling, flawed, largely well-meaning flesh and blood portals to this world. An immensely satisfying collection."
--Andre Dubus III, author of House of Sand and Fog and Townie, a Memoir

"Coe writes about his parents with warmth, insight and grace...with celebration as well as regret. A collection that captures the tenderness and intimacy within the black family. His words construct a path from the innocence of childhood into the winter of aging. His book will outlive much of the poetry being written today."
--E. Ethelbert Miller

Praise for "Picnic on the Moon"

"Coe is a poet's poet, a jazzy, postmodern Ben Johnson . . . understated, but shimmering with wit, compassion, integrity of purpose."
--The Phoenix (Boston)

"A unique conversational but powerful voice. . . . Direct, honest. We hear and believe."
--Marge Piercy

"Deep, wise and beautiful...Charles Coe gives poetry readers many fine examples of an old, worthy craft. A volume for the permanent shelf!"
--Small Press Review

About the Author

Charles Coe is the author of two previous volumes of poetry, both with Leapfrog Press: "All Sins Forgiven: Poems for my Parents" (2013) and "Picnic on the Moon" (1999). He's also the author of "Spin Cycles," a novella published by Gemma Media.

Charles is the winner of a fellowship in poetry from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and was selected by the Associates of the Boston Public Library as a "Boston Literary Light in 2014." He teaches poetry in the MFA programs at Salve Regina University in Newport, Rhode Island and Bay Path University in Longmeadow, Massachusetts.