Old Temples in Moonlight by R. W. Haynes

$23.99

Full-length, paper

979-8-89990-538-4

2026

Eliot’s assertion that he has shored fragments against his ruins still echoes here in the poems of Old Temples by Moonlight, though that assertion has itself now been sufficiently fragmented and possibly too often shored in the massive shoring project of a time when it seems we make our beds among fragments of fragments and fondly trust that the electricity in our devices will be a sufficient sustainer of our lives, our work, and our half-frantic, half-lethargic poems, in which we combat the monsters of wisdom, rage, and apathy, looking toward the shadows of the Parthenon and those of Chichén Itzá and dreaming of rivers, the Rio Bravo and the Nile, the Alapaha and the Mississippi, those potent and immortal washers-away of our sins, praying in faith and hope and love, praying for many things, throwing in prayers to be free of our own complaints and our own incapacities and our own gross lapses of kindness. One’s poems are one’s life, and hope persists that one’s life is connected to the lives of others, though perhaps not necessarily to Eliot’s.

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R. W. Haynes, Regents Professor of Humanities at Texas A&M International University, has published four previous collections of his poetry: Laredo Light, Let the Whales Escape, Heidegger Looks at the Moon, and The Deadly Shadow of the Wall. He has also published numerous poems in journals in the United States and internationally. In addition to his poetic works, he writes plays and has recently finished his second novel.

PRAISE:

Old Temples in Moonlight, by R.W. Haynes, is a fascinating book of poetry. I haven’t had a chance to read a lot of poetry recently due to health issues but when I picked this up to read I couldn’t put it down. It comforted me through blood transfusions and I personally enjoyed the blend of modern poetic structures and the intermesh of Classical Greek themes: these are almost Joycean in thematic structure, and it is always fascinating to read that kind of interplay.

The poem “Song on Grand Avenue” reminded me of one of Picard’s speeches as well as Beckett.

“Tell me,” began a lady of the street,

How can you tell victory from defeat?”

“Victory feels better, temporarily;

Defeat lasts much longer; it sticks with me

Till it and I live companionably,

Smiling at old claims of victory.”

The gray-eyed lady smiled reservedly.

“Ideas of ideas will trap a foolish man.

Avoid stupid fantasies if you can,

Keeping a grip on materiality.

There’s a visual feel to these poems, and, as someone who studied both poetry and Classical History, these poems resonated with me and I would recommend delving into this collection. R. W. Haynes is a rising poet whose path rises to meet him.

–Amos Greig, Editor-in-Chief, A New Ulster

Poetry with potency and play, Haynes’s work forces us to confront the treacherous times we’re living in. His words are sharp as a sword, and carefully precise too. His writing mirrors paradoxes, contradictions and truly how neither black nor white exist without each other. Reading Old Temples in Moonlight is a journey to recognizing how materiality is frail, and we the mortals, simply make the most of the cards we’re dealt.

–Saumya Choudhury, Founder of Delhi Poetry Slam

Three reasons to read Old Temples in Moonlight: 1. An extraordinary and diverse collection of poetry that never dips in quality or loses focus. 2. I love poem titles and in this book they are fabulous. 3. It’s a rare treat to find a book and a poet that uses rhyme so well and apparently effortlessly.

–Jack Caradoc, Editor of Dreich Magazine

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