The Bodies Beneath the Table

Poetry. Forty-one poems ranging from the effects of fireworks on a war veteran to resurrecting the memory of an old love and finally burying it. Each of these poems is informed by Mr. Ehrhart's Vietnam War combat experience, whether listening to the president saying violence is not the answer while he is ordering missiles launched ("Kosovo"), or remembering that 9/11 changed the world similarly as did Sputnik where patriotism is called for or is called into question ("Manning the Walls"), or refusing to talk about escapist love ("All About Love"). Ehrhart's voice is sure, his rhythms contemporary, his themes relevant and moving.