Reviews and Recommendations From BOOKSTR - (October 1, 2025)
*Gorgeous, Seasonal Poetry for a Wonderful Fall Transition by Mika Ellison "Autumn Poetry is a collection that features a dazzling breadth of options, from works for kids that incorporate all the adrenaline and excitement of a first Halloween to contemplative nature poems that turn a gentle eye to the elements of autumn in the Midwest. No matter the subject, Darrow conjures up images and elements that will make you want to stay in the world she creates. Darrow also examines the connotations that come along with fall: the ghosts, goblins, and ghouls that attend our experience of the season. The attendant darkness of the shortened days can feel ominous and foreboding, but in Darrow's hands, it becomes something much softer and kinder - the opportunity to linger and remember rather than feeling the phantoms of the past come back to haunt the present."
From BGAUTHORS - (September 2023) - Blog - from Bowling Green State University
*Poetry for Fall by Jay Grummel "Much like the title says this collection is perfect for cozy reading. Written specifically with fall in mind Darrow writes soft pieces with supernatural undertones. She takes the usually feared fall features such as ghost and turns them into something soft, something that is beyond just fear. If you're looking for a cozy, but in the Halloween/fall spirit this collection is exactly what you need."
From READ POETRY - (September 20, 2020) - Blog - Andrews McMeel Publishing * 8 Poetry Collections for Sweater Weather by Thea Voutiritsas "A poet of the rural Midwest, Jan Darrow's work is deeply rooted in the natural world. A lover of ghost stories and abandoned spaces,
Autumn Poetry: A Collection for the Season evokes the haunting spirit of Autumn."
A LOOK INSIDE: AUTUMN POETRY: A COLLECTION FOR THE SEASON August Lakes
No use
gathering now
the August lakes
have gone to seed.
Persistent
autumn winds
batter the sky.
Cold dry docks push
against a siege
of colored leaves
blown across
the water echoing
the last
dissolving sound
of summer.
Whisper in the Woods The forest path has fallen leaves
And smells of apples
Ripened in the trees.
On warm October days I've stood;
I've heard the whisper in the woods.
It murmurs low about the vines
But sound is stronger as it climbs
About the oaks and pines.
It speaks wisdom from the years;
Mother Nature's clever.
Listen,
For all that she has understood
Is ours forever.
The woods are full of winter wood
Colors gold and gray,
And I'll remember what I've heard
On warm October days.
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