“In poetry works, the poet themself, has to engage the reader quickly, either via the title or with the first few lines of the poem as the work starts. Right away, the Somatoliths are the “hook” that as the first section sets the entire work up as to understanding the poetry of a kidney stone as it passes. Using Greek root words throughout, ‘-lith’ for stone, and ‘somatic, gastro’ as to the body and then specifically to the body’s plumbing, the poem progresses essentially as an artful rendering of ‘Odyssey.’ This is a saga unlike any other, and novel-like with our hero taking a journey, he has to face the one-eyed monster, a kidney stone. James is all over inside his head and the scenery that emerges is fantastical and believable. He survives his own personal travel through the Strait of Hellespont, and gives us as our ‘pearl’ a polished tourmaline of a book.”

—SARA ROBINSON, author of Sometimes the Little Town, Stones for Words, Two Little Girls in a Wading Pool, and Needville

“James Cole masterfully bridges the chasm between the empirical rigidity of scientific inquiry and the unfiltered rawness of human emotion. Drawing upon his background in science, each poem is a testament to the superpower of poetry: an observation of the minutiae of our existence. The juxtaposition turns into an organic object we all live with and would like to articulate. In one particularly striking piece, Cole writes, ‘I don’t trust people because / I know them or I don’t know them.’ This line encapsulates the paradox of human connection, laying bare the vulnerability that underpins our relationships. It is through such profound observations that the poet invites readers to reconsider the certainty of scientific facts in light of the uncertainties of human experience. Yet, amid these profound reflections, Cole’s characteristic sense of humor and gentle reminders not to take ourselves too seriously shine through, providing a balancing levity that makes this collection not just intellectually stimulating but also deeply human.This is a saga unlike any other, and novel-like with our hero taking a journey, he has to face the one-eyed monster, a kidney stone. James is all over inside his head and the scenery that emerges is fantastical and believable. He survives his own personal travel through the Strait of Hellespont, and gives us as our ‘pearl’ a polished tourmaline of a book.”

—Miriam Calleja is a bilingual poet, ghostwriter, workshop leader, and translator. Her latest publication is Come Closer, I Don’t Mind the Silence