RELEASED FEBRUARY 2023
OTHER RELEASES. . .
The Commies Come to Waterton, collected short stories
Published by Cyberwit, July 2023
Available on Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Commies-Come-Waterton-Bill-Cushing/dp/8119228200
or contact me directly for signed copies
REACTIONS
Bill Cushing's characters are people who can see through false fronts and lies. They might be kids in school who understand the limitations of their teachers and education or grunt soldiers in the Trojan War who understand the frailties and inconsistencies of not only their leaders but even their gods. More importantly, Bill can see through the bullshit. He can see through the false conventions of education, employment, religion, and society, and his latest book, The Commies Come to Waterton, helps us to see through it too. It's important to be reminded that there are multiple ways to understand the world, and Cushing's gift to us is that he gives us another clear vision of the way the world is.
--John Brantingham, author of Life: Orange to Pear
Bill Cushing’s The Commies Come to Waterton features stories of gritty realism, exploring what it means to be a boy and a man in twentieth-century America. With gentle irony and deft touches of humor, Cushing sketches the embarrassments of boyhood and the realities of working-class life, political conflict, bureaucratic mismanagement, traumatic war memories, and the shadow of nuclear apocalypse. In a couple of fantasy tales, Cushing wryly portrays the danger of getting what you wish for and the implications of a Talking Heads song. This book is essential if you want to understand men’s struggle to find themselves in a changing world.
-- Ethan Goffman, author of Realities and Alternatives, Dreamscapes, and other books
Just a Little Cage of Bone
Published by Southern Arizona Press, February 2023
Available on Amazon
or contact me directly for signed copies
Reviews:
From medium.com
https://medium.com/@proflambert23/by-daniel-lambert-86025162e92f
From Highland Park Poetry
—Pamela A. Shea (9th Poet Laureate of Sunland-Tujunga 2017-2020)
Put on your seat belt! In this collection Bill takes his readers on a poetic journey through history, riding on the continuum of shared humanity. His poems are soaked in musicality, vibrancy, and sensitivity. Be prepared for a luscious, delicious thrill ride that delights while challenging one’s equilibrium. We meet new friends while becoming reacquainted with those we’ve known for decades from afar. Bill confronts societal ills while enticing us to face our own experiences and pre-conceived notions. This collection invites many repeated visits.
—Dr. Michael Anthony Ingram (Host and Producer of Quintessential Listening: Poetry Online Radio)
Bill Cushing expresses himself unreservedly in his latest poetry collection, Just A Little Cage of Bone. In his poems, he conveys blissful moments, melancholy memories, and heartfelt desires in a concise, accessible, and straightforward manner. For example, in the poem, A Prayer To Reject Sanctuary, Cushing writes, "Every scrape and scar, cut and burn, ordained me into who I became." The line is visceral and powerful. Many readers will relate to these brutal yet authentic words. In truth, this poetry collection contains dozens of unvarnished lines that will blow you away. In Just A Little Cage of Bone, Bill Cushing has achieved his goal of delivering yet another well-written and engaging work. Check it out! It is well worth it.
—Linda Imbler (poet: Spica’s Frequency: The Here and Now and The There and Then and Big Questions, Little Sleep)
In his newest poetry volume, Poet Bill Cushing pays unique homage to one of his greatest writing influences, while employing his own style of exquisite verse, rich with imagery. Within this collection, Mr. Cushing seamlessly interweaves the past into the modern day cloth of our current society’s woes, threats, comforts and victories.
Whether writing about his reactions to the experiences of historical figures, or his
own personal experiences with those he knows intimately, Bill has captured the essence of what makes a hero or a villain. He has captured the essence of how complex relationships with his contemporaries can be.
Despite such broad and varied topics of life, reading Bill’s writings, even through his select lens, will let you, the reader, use your own lens to savor the poems. His approach to writing keeps the poetry accessible.
The musical rhythms of his work also make for very pleasant reading. This is a book you will want to carry with you, both in your hands and in your heart.
