BEFORE DRAGONFLIES by J Delayne Ryms

Before Dragonflies hurdles the reader through time, space, perception in a multitude of styles and forms. J. Delayne Ryms trusts the reader, shocks us into thought, never lulls us into complacency. She observes, she names, she is precise and accurate, she immerses us in multi-sensory experience. Themes of geologic time, of layers, of horses are all brilliant organizational principles for the heart of struggle in this collection. Within this poetry, she makes us feel deeply, ache, wonder, and occasionally rejoice.

–Susan Edwards Richmond is the author of Before We Were Birds, Increase, Purgatory Chasm, Birding in Winter, and Boto. She has also published over 100 poems in journals and anthologies, including children’s magazines. Bird Count, a children’s picture book, was published in 2019.

For several decades, I have been convinced of J Delayne Ryms’ unique poetic genius. Each poem that I have received from her over the years has come as a burst of light bringing with it something new and original. This collection proves her genius as an original American poet and spirit. Her special blend of passion, mind, and imagination makes her a truly original force and presence among our most prominent modern poets. She writes with a Southern vision and voice that recognizes the darkness, pain, and loss in life that must be countered with the energy and creativity of an enlightened moral and creative imagination. She turns disability and pain into strengths for survival and triumph. She writes a poetry of love and hope and the power of the human spirit. With this magnificent collection of her poetry, her time has come.

–Sam B. Girgus is an American film and literature scholar, professor of English at Vanderbilt University. He is well known for his analysis of the works of Woody Allen in his books such as The Films of Woody Allen and A Companion to Woody Allen with Peter J. Bailey. Dr. Girgus is the author of: Time, Existential Presence, and the Cinematic Image; Clint Eastwood’s America; Levinas and the Cinema of Redemption; America on Film; Hollywood Renaissance; The Films of Woody Allen; Desire and the Political Unconscious in American Literature; The New Covenant; The Law of the Heart.

Delayne Ryms has given us a searingly honest and generous-hearted volume of poetry. Employing precise language, piercing imagery, and stunning metaphors, she explores a fragile landscape of human suffering and sacrifice, as well as the enduring beauty of natural world. This collection is so much more than the sum of its parts. It is a memorable journey that takes us to new worlds (interior and otherwise). It holds up a mirror in which we can view our own lives with greater clarity.

–Sara DeLuca, Author of Dancing the Cows Home: A Wisconsin Girlhood, and The Crops Look Good: News from a Midwestern Family Farm (Minnesota Historical Society Press.)  Ms. DeLuca, whose poetry has appeared in numerous regional and national literary journals, has also published a poetry collection, Shearing Time, with Finishing Line Press; .

J Delayne Ryms has produced an amazing chapbook of absolutely gorgeous lyrical work, beautifully arranged for the reader to understand from where her poetic nerve derives.

–Pat Butler is an award winning poet who has published in numerous literature journals and online magazines. Her first poetry chapbook, Poems from the Boatyard, was published in 2011, followed by The Boatman’s Daughter, both published by Finishing Line Press.