“In bygone centuries a mirror was held to the lips of a passing loved one to check for the delicate mist of life. These poems are like that mirror. To their reflecting surface clings a distillation of clarity and wisdom, precious to those who look into the glass.” —Rhoda Janzen, Author, Mennonite in a Little Black Dress and Mennonite Meets Mr. Right

Summary: What the Body Knows is a collection of poems that seeks the language of what lies deeply within the body, to listen and to name the longings, losses, and gains of a long life.

In a time of quick and easy media exchange, the poet seeks words and rhythms which call us to lean and listen, to dig patiently for what has been buried, and to release oneself to the mystery and power of love.

Comment: “Jean Janzen addresses her treasured topics—desire, mystery, language, family and heritage, music, embodied spirituality—with confidence and grace. ‘Write it, the hunger and the song,’ says one poem. And she does, brilliantly. Janzen’s vision has never been clearer; her words have never confessed more truth. This book took over 80 years to write, and its final, passionate message is “mercy,” a resounding ‘Yes.’”
—Julia Spicher Kasdorf, Author, Poetry in America

“In ‘Winter Child’ Jean Janzen remembers ‘a kind of ecstasy’ from a wintry afternoon, her ‘small figure falling again and again / to make a host of angels in my own backyard.’ Steeped as they are in loss and grief, these poems may hardly seem angelic—except in their glimmering music, their wintry knowledge, and their generous wisdom. What the Body Knows is a book to savor and to treasure.” —Jeff Gundy, Author, Somewhere Near Defiance and Songs from an Empty Cage

See also more DreamSeeker Poetry Series titles.

Market: Janzen’s poems should appeal to anyone who appreciates fine poetry, who has delighted in her many previous poetry collections, and is moved by poems that probe beneath the skin, seeking to name the deep longings.

Shelving: Poetry—of body and soul, hunger, childhood, aging; Anabaptist-Mennonite literature; Spirituality—Mennonite. BISAC: Poetry; RTM: 640 Poetry.

The Author: Jean Janzen, a poet living in Fresno, California, is the author of six previous collections of poetry who has received a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship and other awards. A graduate of Fresno Pacific University and California State University of Fresno, she has taught at Fresno Pacific and Eastern Mennonite University.

Publisher: Cascadia Publishing House LLC
Imprint: DreamSeeker Books
Copublisher: None
Publication date: June 2015
Approximate Pages: 84

2 Tentative Format: 5.5 x 8.5" trade paper
Prices: $12.95 US/Can. ISBN 13: 978-1-68027-001-3; ISBN 10: 1-68027-001-X