QUESTIONS IN THE BALANCE

Breathing new life into traditional rhythmic, rhyming poetry

Collection awakens suppressed feelings and thoughts on philosophy

2011-05-26

LONGWOOD, FL â€" Questions in the Balance ($15.99, paperback, 9781613792827) is a collection of 73 of Christopher W. Boyden’s best original poems, written over the course of the past 37 years. Boyden grew up in New England where the poetry of Robert Frost was more than inspirational - it was more akin to a religion, celebrating nature for its own sake. Boyden explains that his poetry stands as a traditionalist's defense to the ongoing dilution of the art form which is "the music of the spoken word." Questions in the Balance will help readers become actual "listeners" of the varied and diverse subjects addressed in the poems, to the extent that they can "feel" what he was feeling when it actually transpired.

The hallmarks of Boyden’s poetry are the musical quality of the rhymes coupled with a rhythm which complements the subject matter. These patterns provide an easy, comfortable anticipation of familiarity for the reader in a clear and emotionally intense manner; seldom encountered in today's poetry journals or circles. The inspiration for each of the poems included in Questions in the Balance is an actual event or experience in the author’s life for which he was seeking a depth of understanding. He finally began to hear his "inner voice" which enabled him to "explain" what was previously unknown through rhyme and meter.

Christopher W. Boyden has been honored to be one of such poets, associated with perpetuating and promulgating this classic art form, since he won the first poetry competition he entered in 1974. Boyden has been honored by the National Library of Poetry and the International Library of Poetry in their acclaimed anthologies; "Best Poems of the '90's" and "The Best Poems of 1996, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2004 and 2007". He was inducted into The National Author's Registry in 2002 and has attained the distinction of "Founding Laureate Member" of the International Library Of Poetry. Many of his poems have been licensed as lyrics to collaborating songwriters who prepared sheet music in multiple formats including rock, show rock, country, folk and ballads.

Xulon Press, a division of Salem Communications, is the world’s largest Christian publisher, with more than 8,000 titles published to date. Questions in the Balance is available online through xulonpress.com/bookstore, amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

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