Sonnets for Desperate Times
The Lone Sonneteer
by James A. Baumgard
From the preface:
“Unlike my earlier sonnets, which covered a wide range of issues and topics, the sixty sonnets in The Lone Sonneteer were prompted by, and are devoted almost entirely to, the 2024 presidential election…pre- and post-.”
Sonnets for Our Time
I Thought They’d Be Around Forever
by James A. Baumgard
Description:
I Thought They'd Be Around Forever comprises sixty sonnets which cover a wide range of topics: climate disaster, species extinction, greed, wealth disparity, love lost and found, mature love, man's incorrigibility, coming to terms with aging, power and corruption, unsocial media, immigration, social upheaval, etc. Though written in a seemingly archaic form, these sonnets will hopefully touch the hearts and minds of today's reader.
More Sonnets for Our Time
None So Strange As Self
by James A. Baumgard
Description:
None So Strange As Self is a companion volume to I Thought They'd Be Around Forever. The sixty sonnets in this volume dovetail and complement those in the earlier book. As in the earlier book, the topics, as well as the language, are for 'our' time.
In Defense of the Wealthy Against the Poor
The Book of Koch bin Moloch
by James A. Baumgard
Description:
The Book of Koch bin Moloch is a satirical treatise, ‘translated’ from an ancient text, comprising twenty-two sonnets, which purports to defend the wealthy against the poor. Though the sonnets retain some of their ‘antiquity,’ they are accessible to today’s reader.
Fifty victim profiles of police violence
If Black Lives Mattered
by James A. Baumgard
From the preface:
“Because of the gut-wrenching subject, and the graphic videos he watched for his research, writing If Black Lives Mattered (consisting of 50 sonnets) was a rollercoaster ride the author would as soon not get on. But once he did, he white-knuckled it through to the end. Thus, it is asking a lot of the reader to get on a ride the author was glad to get off of. But ask he does. At ride’s end, may the reader’s reward, if that is the word, be more than simply relief…
“N.B. If the profiles weren’t horrific enough, I included impactful images at the very end. Some are disturbing…reader discretion is advised.“