A Book of New England Poems, by John Cross, is an exceptional collection of writings that stir in the reader a romantic sentiment and reflection on our meaning on earth. Cross’s poetry and narrative lead us into the complex world of our deepest hopes, fears and aspirations for meaning, and our most anxious yearnings to understand our personal place in the universe. In simple, fresh, language and imagery, each poems engages us to set the bar of meaning high up, and believe in ourselves that, despite life’s suffering moments and travail, our common, evercday surroundings affirm a continuous chance for fulfillment, even if that fulfillment seems elusive. The authors poems were inspired and conceived by the sea and lands of New England. His words are often reveries: a contemplation of shadows, the speaking of oaks in a cathedral yard, or seagulls seen as floating sculpture.His transcendent imagery lifts the reader out of the mundane into an ethereal plane.