This month's featured books by IVJ authors are "Gallery" by Howard Richard Debs, "Atsa" by Raymond Greiner, and "Animal Crackers" by Richard Ratliff will make terrific presents for those you love. Check them out!
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"Gallery-A Collection of Pictures and Words" by Howard Richard Debs
Available on Amazon
Visit the Author's Website: https://howarddebs.com/

What they're saying about his work...
"as always seems to be the case with your poems, I learned something in reading this that I hadn't known about." --Tim Green, Editor Rattle
"You really captured the essence of the blues in this poem. It made me want to run to my mother's house and play the records she kept on the bookshelf in her living room"--Nortina Simmons, Editor Sediments Literary-Arts Journal
"a powerful lesson about the poetry of bearing witness." -- Greenwood Writer's Guild
"a powerful lesson about the poetry of bearing witness." -- Greenwood Writer's Guild
"Atsa" by Raymond Greiner

Please see the review written by Cherifa Zekhnine in this issue of IVJ!
"Animal Crackers" by Richard Ratliff
Available on Amazon
Animal Crackers, by Richard Ratliff, extends his poetic talents to the natural world of animals. Contained in this circus volume, Ratliff once again reflects on life with both humor and intellect. From the extinct sabertooth tiger to wascally wabbits, Ratliff covers a wide range of critters in each poem. Following up his previous work titled 3420 Backyard Conversations, the poet imitates fatherhood, sports, politics, professions, and more. Kick up your feet and enjoy this amusing safari as you will find nothing escapes his imagination, no matter the beast.
Richard Ratlliff is a poet with a sense of humor and play and his new book Animal Crackers is a delight for children and adults alike. This little book focuses on animals from bees to giraffes and monkeys. Ratiliff loves word play and manages to find wonderful puns that reflect both animal properties of animals and behaviors of humans. Admittedly, some of the book's jokes may be a little too complicated for younger children that shouldn't dissuade you from purchasing the book. Not only is this book's poetry of entertaining and musical with lots of rhymes, and onomatopoeia, but also the pages are filled with colorful whimsical illustrations that will delight any child and any adult who remembers being a child.