Truth to the Rumors

The poems in this new book by Nancy Lubarsky are elegant and centered. Filled with skillfully crafted language and rich imagery, they are underscored by narrative and lyrical precision-often with the quality of prayer. Keenly observant and with an awareness of life as it is, Lubarsky's work emphasizes her compassion and gratitude as she invites readers into the circle of her immediate family. We meet her mother and father, a sister who committed suicide, her husband, children, friends, and her beloved dog. Through intimate treatment of personal experiences and relationships, she speaks to the larger condition of the collective spirit and heart. In telling her story through these poems, she witnesses what being human means-this is a truly remarkable collection!

-Adele Kenny, Poetry Editor, Tiferet

In Truth to the Rumors, Nancy Lubarsky, in poetry both wise and eloquent, leads us across the varied landscape of her life. We learn about her baker father whose "ghost appears / in my muffin batter," childhood vacations in the Catskills, "where my parents met," and the poignant New Year's Eve note in "The Path" from the son who needed to go his own way. In the book's wonderful final poem, "Train Ride," Lubarsky, upon seeing the passing billboards on her way into New York City, writes, "I imagine / my stories on the back of these signs. / What's already happened is clearer." It is that clarity and perspective in her poems that make Truth to the Rumors a collection to cherish for, by sharing her journey in these beautifully crafted poems, we deepen our own lives as well.

-Edwin Romond, Author, Man at the Railing

Nancy Lubarsky guides us through a life of learning in her wonderful new book of poems, Truth to the Rumors. At each stage of her memories, she brings fresh insight to the evolution of language-from the family jibber-jabber 'round the kitchen table in a small apartment to her suburban family life in New Jersey and her career in education. Through all the learning, teaching, and traveling, she finds time to wrap up her wondering with reflections of hope and serenity in her own stubborn backyard on the changing frontier of the 'burbs.

-Tom Plante, Publisher/Editor, Exit 13 Magazine