The Ocean's Edge

William Bernhardt's second poetry collection explores the complex tapestry of family and the subtle interconnections that bind us to our past and forms the ballast to identity. Popular culture merges with classical allusions, weaving the colorful threads of a fabric composed of moments lived and still to be lived. These poems remind us that we are part of a collective history and that we are never alone.

“William Bernhardt is one of Oklahoma’s and the country’s literary treasures. Anyone doubting that can sit quietly with his new volume of poetry, The Ocean’s Edge, and come away utterly convinced. Part William Carlos Williams (the big picture of our national lives) and e.e. cummings (poetry’s micro-moments), this new book will bring converts to poetry and to Bill’s yeasty vision. This is poetry for those who love reading and want a reminder of why they should read more poetry. They will not be disappointed.”

—Robert Con Davis-Undiano,
Executive Director of World Literature Today.