Böcker av Rainer Neumann

This is a book of selected poetry and pastel drawings that came out of cards created during covid times. The idea came from "Literatura de Cordel" or literature on a string, a Brazilian tradition that included booklets of poetry and art work brought to the market place, hung on a string and read and sold to passers by. I made a card version and they became an offering to the community. Out of many appreciative viewers, this book was created. It includes most of the poems and art work of the cards, the last one made for the winter Solstice time, a fitting ending for this endeavor, a journey of thought and words and art that chronicled the times and seasons of the year.

Introduction lyrics the use of language within the patterns of rhythmic sound and contextual meaningwords within a consistent poetic formword patterns of meter and rhymewords usually sung to some musical compositiona tune a melodywords usually sung with instrumental or recorded accompanimentwords chosen for their simplicity orcomplexity of syllableswords chosen for their informing and enlivening and aspiring and inspiring and remembering and emotional uplifting and heart soothing and an understanding of these times with an evocation for the freedoms we have fought for... and must continue to fight for...

This remembrance is based on stories I was told over many years about how my mother and father met and how their love grew during the terrible war years. I had read and translated my mother's journal and also my father's poetry and on a visit to their home an ancient muse came over me and I was impelled to write out their story from a folk tale perspective. There is a Swan Lake in the city we lived and the swan became the mythological connection of their love.