Chasing Echoes

About the Book

Chasing Echoes passionately brings the past to the present through nature. Walt Barger sees himself in the ocean that " continues to roll waves to an empty beach", in the dawn that " neatly fold[s] the blanket of stars in the West " His words gracefully balance the self in nature " like the spindle of a fine time piece". Barger's poetry evokes the simplicity of a past both rural and Southern. Whether he is describing overalls or a weather worn piano, objects take on presence. The language is vivid with a sense of history that is personal and connected. Poems like "Bib with Buttoned Fly" vividly speak of his memories, at eight years old, of owning a new pair of overalls in crisp, sharp lines. The poem "I Wish you Bluebirds" is a poem with surprising freshness in the lines "when thoughts are stumbling over stones of clay, I wish you bluebirds to sing, and pave the way."

"Walt Barger has a great sense of place. Walking through his poetry, you see family, friends, and neighbors. His use of description takes us home."
-Margaret Britton Vaughn
Poet Laureate of Tennessee

About the Author

Walt Barger was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee between Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, north of The Chickamauga Battlefield, in 1930. He is retired, from his mechanical contracting company. Walt?s inspiration is walking the trails of ?Reflection Riding? where the Cherokee trod the Trail of Tears. Walt still lives in Chattanooga.