The Tattooed Desert - (Pitt Poetry) by Richard Shelton (Paperback)

About the Book

In this collection, Shelton's first, he moves backward and forward through time but always in the same landscape, the desert-mountains of southern Arizona, which foster his surrealistic view of his interior conflict. He is followed by peculiarly insistent voices from the past.

Book Synopsis

Shelton says of his work: "I consider myself a regionalist and a surrealist. I have lived in the desert for ten years and hope that my work reflects that fact." In the forty-seven poems in this collection the poet moves backward and forward through time but always in the same landscape, the desert-mountains of southern Arizona, which foster his surrealistic view of his interior conflict. He is followed by peculiarly insistent voices from the past.

Review Quotes

The style [Shelton] has evolved is remarkable for its precise observation and sensuous, memorable imagery. These poems articulate the song of solitude and drama of the secret traveler in all of us. In that sense, he comes to us with his first book with a voice as old as poetry itself.-- "Charles Simic"

About the Author

Richard Shelton is Regents Professor of English at the University of Arizona. He is the author of ten books of poetry and six chapbooks. Shelton is the recipient of numerous awards, including the United States Award from the International Poetry Forum and two NEA Fellowships.