Description
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River
by Stephen Page
$14.99, paper
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River by Stephen Page
$14.99
Thoroughly enjoyed A Ranch Bordering the Salty River! A story so close to nature told in poetry. My absolute favorite -“This Morning” Thank you Stephen!
– Laura Berman
I have read most of the poems you had put in the ranch book before. However I wanted to read them in the order you placed in the book. I did it twice. I really enjoyed the flow. Really enjoyed it.
– Deborah Page
“Stephen Page’s “A Ranch Bordering the Salty River” is a unique collection of poems whose main subject is an American managing a large ranch in Argentina. Generally an unsentimental account of chores, local workers and natural wonders, Page presents striking and convincing images and diction. The Wild West is still alive, but it’s in South America.”
– Ed Ochester
This is a short collection of thought provoking poems surrounding a gaucho life in Argentina, the culture of Argentina and it’s beauty and flow. A welcome addition to any collection on Argentina culture and poetry.
– Ross Ferg
Blurb from Colette Inez
This strong and unerringly honest book gives us a unique perspective of a poet/rancher. The poet (his books and diplomas hidden in a secret room) has an insightful grasp of the largely uneasy worker-boss relationship and makes poems out of his ambivalence. Page’s world of horses, cows, birds, grasses, native flowers, and trees are evoked with a mix of lyricism and exactitude. We come to trust his attachment to the land and to his wife and to his wife’s family. All this with a glimmer of a love story in which we may imagine what brought this erudite poet to gaucho country add up to a memorable collection.
– Colette Inez, author of The Luba Poems
Finishing Line Press
Rating: ***** [5 of 5 Stars!]
Mother Nature, the world of the gauchos, bees, an Argentine ranch: with vivid accuracy and little sentimentality, Stephen Page delineates the sensibilities and life of Jonathan, a rancher. The afternoon mate taken, observations of cattle, mosquitoes, flora and fauna not only of the physical landscape, but the mental landscape of those that inhabit it, Page returns again and again to the restorative old ways of nature: “Yesterday I walked to the Wood. / Yesterday I walked back. / Yesterday I walked. Yesterday / I want to return to the Wood, / To the way it was.”
– Mộng-Lan, author of One Thousand Minds Brimming.
Rating: ***** [5 of 5 Stars!]
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River is a character-driven poetic narrative filled with suspense, cruelty, love of mate, goddesses, Teresa, family, and nature that nature that coexists with cattle, cattle ranches, and gauchos alike. There are heroes—Jonathan the narrator and The Horseback Vet—juxtaposed with villains of all sorts which one is likely to encounter on ranches. At the “Tree root” Jonathan (a man of many occupations besides ranching) longs not to be driven by soy-for-profit which his business partner urges: “to plow away more of my grass, shot the quail, trap the armadillos, flit away the mockingbird, spray to death the flowers, plant genetically modified soy, sterilize my herd to nothing”; rather, he wants “Transformations” – “let the cattle feed…keep the fields clovered…take daily strolls in the quiet of the Wood…watch for hours bumblebees work, and lock eyes with the mockingbird.” Jonathan has this unescapable longing “to return to the wood/To the way it was.” Stephen Page will take you there and upon returning, you too will be changed.
– Diane Sahms-Guarnieri, author of Images of Being
Rating: ***** [5 of 5 Stars!]
Stephen Page –
“Stephen Page’s “A Ranch Bordering the Salty River” is a unique collection of poems whose main subject is an American managing a large ranch in Argentina. Generally an unsentimental account of chores, local workers and natural wonders, Page presents striking and convincing images and diction. The Wild West is still alive, but it’s in South America” — Ed Ochester
Stephen Page –
Thoroughly enjoyed A Ranch Bordering the Salty River! A story so close to nature told in poetry. My absolute favorite -“This Morning” Thank you Stephen! – Laura Berman
Stephen Page –
I have read most of the poems you had put in the ranch book before. However I wanted to read them in the order you placed in the book. I did it twice. I really enjoyed the flow. Really enjoyed it. – Deborah Page
Stephen Page –
“Stephen Page’s “A Ranch Bordering the Salty River” is a unique collection of poems whose main subject is an American managing a large ranch in Argentina. Generally an unsentimental account of chores, local workers and natural wonders, Page presents striking and convincing images and diction. The Wild West is still alive, but it’s in South America.” – Ed Ochester
Stephen Page –
This is a short collection of thought provoking poems surrounding a gaucho life in Argentina, the culture of Argentina and it’s beauty and flow. A welcome addition to any collection on Argentina culture and poetry. – Ross Ferg
Stephen Page –
5.0 out of 5 stars2017 … Back to reading.
By Patricia A. Krause
This little gem is a unique collection of poems told by a poet/rancher/old school friend. A New Years resolution to get back to reading has led me here …. finally. Back to the good stuff.
Stephen Page –
Beautiful work of art crafted in clean, clear & graceful poetry. “Wolfed this down” in 20 minutes when I received it. Had to re-read just to immerse myself & be transported to these places & experiences again. Felt the experience of being there (I could actually smell the ranch)! A gritty realism, sometimes tragic, at other times, sweet. Incredibly talented.–By wannaknowanswers
Stephen Page –
Book Reviews about “A Ranch Bordering the Salty River”
There is a sincerity that runs throughout this short work that touches the soul as Jonathon shares the joys, hardships, secrets, and the dangers that entwine the life of a rancher in Argentina. It is the type of storytelling that mesmerizes the reader as told through the voice of a poet. It captures in me in the same mood as would a poem written by Frost… So much that isn’t said is very aptly implied.
The sense of becoming one with the storyteller is very real as one visualizes all that is going on. One becomes the persona sipping mate while taking in the beauty of the landscape, the woods, and the moon. One’s senses come to life with the scent of eucalyptus, the permeation of cow shit, the witnessing and aid of new life as a cow struggles to give birth, or death for the unfortunate calf who wasn’t reached in time. The wild imaginings and anticipations of a child heading toward the chickens are measured against the precariousness of one’s situation as rustlers bid the need to holster one’s gun and sheath one’s knife.
The ability to say so much in such few words and such a short work shows the nature of a truly gifted poet.
— Kevin Cooper of KC Books & Music
Stephen Page –
“Llegar a casa y sorprenderte con un bello libro de un gran autor y además dedicado!!!. Que más se puede pedir para la puerta de un finde largo y además de mi cumple feliz!!. Gracias #aranchborderingthesaltyriver” #FinishingLinePress, y Stephen Page — Verónica Kolodesky
William Brill –
Poetry in the hands of MFAs had become a febrile plant indeed. Now, Stephen does have an MFA but it hasn’t caused him to stray from the truth of the very unromantic, brutal nature of ranching in South America, while at the same time exposing the reader to the beauty and satisfaction that is there if one can see it. Stephan sees it and with his insight lets us see it as well.
Carolyn Page –
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River presented a lifestyle unknown to me, yet strangely familiar; the nuances of everyday life, the thoughts, checks and balances corresponding to a lifestyle known.
As humans we experience widely diverse lives, yet the intricacies of each are tightly woven in personalities, responses and reactions experienced and understood, in varying shades, by all.
Stephen has, in this book, captured the multiplicity of being human in all its raw honesty, and laid it bare for the reader to absorb, to delight within, to ponder, to agree.
A very rich and rewarding reading experience, Stephen. Thank You.
Stephen Page –
DAMN GOOD READ. – Sean X
Stephen Page –
I’m struck by a quaint individualized grace in these poems that fuse nature with the human spirit. Models of understatement, these poems are startling and moving, allusively beautiful work that springs forth from a rich and diverse personal mythology. I want this book! — David Thane Cornell
Stephen Page –
I celebrate your book on ranch and farming! — Esther Cross, author of Tres Hermanos.
Stephen Page –
Book Review: A Ranch Bordering the Salty River by Stephen Page by Garrett Dennert on Orson’s Pubishing
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River by Stephen Page
★★★★★ Stephen Page’s A Ranch Bordering the Salty River accomplishes something quite impressive just in its genre-bending layout: 20 pointed poems tell a story whose depth could span the breadth of a novel. More impressive, these poems stay with you; this story stays with you. The lingering power of A Ranch Bordering the Salty River is made possible by Page’s control over language. Not only are we granted what feels like exclusive access to wonderful imagery of the natural world, but we’re slow-dripped a cast of characters (and the ensuing plot) in a way that never feels forced or overwhelming.
At the core of A Ranch Bordering the Salty River is Jonathan, a rancher who navigates the ups and downs of attempting to run an environmentally-conscious ranch alongside his wife. He’s faced with various problems along the way if he is to stay true to the craft, and true to himself — if he and the ranch are to live on, how are each of them to change? How is change to be handled?
In this way, I think Jonathan strikes two different chords: 1) his passion for the outdoors is contagious; readers, too, will be drawn to the woods, to the sky, to the birds, and 2) as the world continues its debate over the causes and effects of climate change, Jonathan is an important character for readers to observe and learn from, no matter their area code.
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River is an important book, and one Page graciously invites us into. One where he offers us a chair he’s built by hand and asks us to stay a while, to share some mate, to breathe.
#orsonsPublishing #ranching #ecoRanching Stephen Page Finishing Line Press Orson’s Publishing #garrettDennert
http://orsonspublishing.com/blog/review-stephen-page
Stephen Page –
Tense with Poles
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River
By Stephen Page
Reviewed by Kate McCahill
Stephen Page’s twenty-poem collection, “A Ranch Bordering the Salty River,” explores the second half of a life, as Page’s narrator navigates the transitions from city to country, from intellectual toil to physical labor, and from youth to middle age.
In language rich with natural imagery and tense with the poles of joy and disillusionment, Page has written a collection that leaves an indelible imprint. These layered stories-in-poems render birth extraordinary, death ordinary, and the natural world a disappearing muse, a forested siren the narrator yearns to know. Ever relevant and always beautiful, “A Ranch Bordering the Salty River” contemplates the possession of land alongside the inscrutable mystery of the natural world.
Bio Kate Mccahill
Welcome! I’m the author of “Patagonian Road: A Year Alone Through Latin America” (Santa Fe Writers Project, 2017). Editor-in-chief of the Santa Fe Literary Review, I’m also an assistant professor of English at the Santa Fe Community College in New Mexico. Books + words are my first true loves. Learn more at http://www.katemccahill.com/
Stephen Page –
Tomando mate y viendo la hermosa edición. Muchas gracias.
Stephen Page –
I read your book again on Sunday… it is like good wine it just gets better with time!! — Lara Berman
Stephen Page –
I reread and reread the powerful poetry. I love it! Great writing! – Elaine Fuller
Stephen Page –
Beautiful complex, passionate intense poetry. – Laura Berman
“Sadly no asado or mate for me, but a clear, authentic voice that speaks to how our self-mythos interacts (collides and colludes) with the world.” Chris Beard
Stephen Page is a wonderful poet, his language is vivid, rich with truth and smoldering emotion, so well observed. Any of his books are a wonderful gift for the poetry lover–and those who are reading poetry for the first time, will read Stephen’s work with joy and delight! – Leslie T. Sharpe, author of The Quarry Fox: And Other Critters of the Wild Catskills and Editing Fact and Fiction : A Concise Guide to Book Editing
Stephen Page –
Rich and Poignant: I’ll be the first to say I’m not a big fan of poetry. To me this is so much more, though. The story itself weaves and wanders and is so vivid. The author definitely has a way with words and I look forward to reading more from him in the future. – AC
Stephen Page –
Not Just Butterflies Passing By
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River
By Stephen Page
Reviewed by sharmishtha
You rarely come across a poetry book like “A Ranch Bordering the Salty River.” I was never a big fan of poetry. Other than Tagore’s works, I have rarely read books of poetry. Yes I have read one poem by this poet, another poem by that poet, and even written quite a few of my own, but I always felt that poems couldn´t stir me like stories do.
I do occasionally read poems when I am online, and after I started blogging I have read many poems-but they are like butterflies, they fly in view, enchant you, thrill you and then you forget them. Very few authors leave a mark on your mind-Stephen Page is one of them!
In my blogging sphere there are few such poets, Charles W. Martin (slpmartin.wordpress.com) is one of them-his and Page’s poems tell stories, stories that enter your mind, make you think and then stay in your head.
Page knows how to create vivid, lucid scenes, and then tell you a story, sometimes simple and sometimes profound! He has intricately woven human nature with day to day life on a ranch. His poetry reminds me of Louis L’ Amour-I read dozens of his books in my early twenties, and he is a great storyteller-he paints a picture of The Wild West clearly and vividly. I can see it through his eyes, and same thing happens when I read Page’s book. I still see some of the scenes.
If you love powerful poetry, this is the book for you! It is the story of a man (Jonathan), his wife (Teresa), and their dog (Dominic) living on a ranch-their daily lives, their family life, their tribulations and turbulences. A man who accidentally became a husband and caught up with kids and grandkids by marriage! Now he has family!
The poems are full of Spanish (Castellano) words and phrases, but they don’t hamper the spirit of the book, in fact they add more authenticity to it. It is a book made to be read again and again without ever getting tired! There is something very special about it, you will have to read it! I hope more and more books like this spill out of Page’s pen (or type into his keyboard) and they bring him the praise and recognition he deserves!
Stephen Page –
Mate (A Ranch Bordering the Salty River)
By Stephen Page
Review by Griselda García
I´ve read “A Ranch Bordering the Salty River” and found it really lovely. Page´s writing is both powerful and delicate.
As an Argentinian, I can´t help to feel close to the mentions of mate. Sipping it while it rains, for instance, is a delightful experience, and I can tell the poem in which you mention it is one of my favorites.
All the things around the Rancho-nature, animals, daily life in general-are so nice! I felt captured by its atmosphere and I travelled with Page’s words.
Congratulations, Mr. Page, and thank you so much for sharing this book with the world.
A hug from all of Buenos Aires, while I am sipping mate with some medicinal herbs.
Stephen Page –
The Price of Utopia
“A Ranch Bordering the Salty River” by Stephen Page
Reviewed by Michael Marrotti
For someone like myself, who’s merely getting by on a meager income, “A Ranch Bordering the Salty River” engendered a retreat from the social cesspool of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This book relocates the reader to a rustic area, that at first, appears to be a utopia. The woods, leaves, wildlife, et cetera always had a tranquil effect on me. Maybe it also has something to do with the seclusion of inner city culture, where unjustified persecution is commonplace, superfluous and has a tendency to result in spilled blood on the pavement. I’ve realized after the completion of this book, that there’s no escape from societal madness. It’s the consequence of living. The price of admission.
In the poem, “Tree Root” the reader is acquainted with the struggle of being a rancher. “The thing you have to deal with when you have pastures is shit: shit on your shoes, shit on your pants legs, shit on your truck, shit on your hands when you open gates. Shit!” And here I am, complaining about scooping cat shit every other day. Then, as if that’s not bad enough: “My business partner who farms lots of my land, wants to plow away more of my grass, shoot the quail, trap the armadillos, flit away the mockingbird, spray to death the flowers, plant genetically modified soy, sterilize my herd to nothing.” Yeah, I almost got into four fist fights this summer, luckily for me, those cowards capitulated. This poem convinced me it wasn’t a big deal after all.
The poem, “Transformations” is the embodiment of what all the small press poets desperately need: Vacation. “The weight of grass is heavy upon my shoulders; lift it, Scythe it, mow it, let the cattle feed that I may walk again.” To this I say, where do I sign up for unemployment benefits? “I just want to sleep in one Saturday, One Monday.” I’m right there with you, my friend. Gravitating to a mere glimpse of the American dream.
“Flora” exemplifies the repercussions of a man’s unappeased sexuality. “She no longer wanders Wood, but cradles Her child in the bleach of her kitchen. I long to touch Her humus-stained feet, but find them washed and clipped. Disinfectant permeates Her pores and sour milk stains Her shirt.” Measures will be taken when the libido is as strong as a Wi-Fi connection. “What right does She have to bear children? Her duty was to virgin Wood.” You win some, you lose some. I’ve been there with soft hands that smell like lotion.
The ingenuity of this chapbook goes without question. I’m an avid reader and supporter of the underground, I’ve never read a chapbook on the life a rancher. The melancholy vibe of this book is undermined by the splendor of rustic scenery. For every dead calf, there’s a mockingbird. For every devastating drought, a river. For each dilemma, a new trajectory.
Stephen Page –
How the Land Exhaled
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River
by Stephen Page
Review by Peggy Turnbull
-it was amazing-
A Ranch Bordering the Salty River (Finishing Line Press) is a collection of twenty finely wrought poems by Stephen Page that tell the story of a man seeking paradise within a fallen world. Jonathan is an outsider who marries into an Argentinian ranch-owning family. He becomes the administrator of its twenty-five hundred acres and approaches his work with reverence and respect. In the opening poem, which takes place during a hard drought, Jonathan thinks that he can “enter the Myth / of Wood, the legend of its shade / to lick the dew off leaves.” At first, the obstacles to encountering “Lady of the Violets” are domestic, but they still feed his soul: a “moon phase” dog (in “Our Dog Dominic”), a child with “lake eyes large as sky,” a world with “sharp-scented jacarandas” and “mist guarding us from trees” (in “Hen Eggs”). Soon the poems become populated with a variety of exploiters and cheats known only as Tattler, Post Maker, Malingerer, Cattle Thief, Horse Thief, Accomplice. The mythic Wood recedes, changes. But the idea of it still drives Jonathan.
The poems in this collection are lovely and evocative. Page is precise in his descriptions; he tells us the lot number where calves are born, the number of months without rain, the number of kilometers the ranch is from the sea. Page knows how to surprise the reader with his word choices. In “The Drought,” “the pods hang brown and brittle / the leaves twirl dunly.” Poems are rich with detail of character and setting. One of my favorites is “Dear Santa Ana,” a letter Jonathan writes to the ranch itself. In it, we meet “the eighty-two-year-old neighbor who begged with palm held out,” and feel how the land “exhaled as if you had been holding your breath for a very long time” after new locks were installed.
But the biggest treat here is the theme: the man who seeks the divine, both in the Wood and outside on the ranch. The journey Jonathan takes on this quest might seem like endless labor, but I’m with him every moment. Each poem is a beauty, the tone amplified by Jonathan’s seeking, even when we learn the reality of “shit on your shoes, shit on your / pants legs, shit on your truck, shit / on your hands…” (from “Tree Root”).
Page is an accomplished poet who weaves a strong spell. I highly recommend A Ranch Bordering the Salty River to all poetry readers. I am grateful to the poet for providing me with a review copy.