Author: John Parkinson

ISBN: 978-1-933538-37-2

Award winning photographer, John Parkinson has turned his attention in his recent book,

Visual Verse: Art In Nature With Symbiotic Verse to putting together a glorious collection of photo

images that have been paired with quotations from some of the greatest poets.

Relying on photo images and words  for its integrity and success, Parkinson has effectively

conveyed to his readers the magnificence of American landscapes. Moreover, he has succeeded

in illustrating the brilliance of “God’s art,” as he has termed it, and how we can spiritually

 profit from it.

Blending poetry with the images is a kind of a tricky proposition for both commercial and artistic reasons. It is difficult enough to sell poetry of living poets, let alone those who are dead, particularly when you attempt to link the poetry of Bronte, Wordsworth, Shakespeare, Tennyson and others with photo images. However, Parkinson has taken the plunge and has succeeded admirably in creating a stimulating experience for lovers of art, photography, nature and poetry.

Upon first opening this coffee table book, I was overwhelmed with Parkinson’s vibrant images of such colorful scenes as Arches National Park in southern Utah, the Northern Rockies of British Colombia, Bryce Canyon National Park, the melancholy scene of fall, the Grand Canyon, Yukon Clouds and many others that make up the collection and of which twenty-five of them are coupled with symbiotic verse.  He has managed to capture the essence of the beauty and exquisiteness of Mother Nature.

The book divides itself into four parts: the first part contains twenty-five images paired with symbiotic verse, next we have photographs gleaned from nature representing a showcase of art in nature, this is followed by five panoramic images designed to stimulate us visually, and finally Parkinson includes succinct comments on the first twenty-five images.

This last section is particularly fascinating for it gives us an opportunity to find out what makes a professional photographer tick and why is he or she is interested in photographing a particular scene. For example, Parkinson’s comments pertaining to “The Path That Leads Nowhere,” reminds us that when we “trek through the wilderness, it’s wonderful to find places where the beauty of nature is so compelling that a specific destination becomes irrelevant. It is the going, not the getting there, that delivers satisfaction.”  Parkinson has included a photo rich in detail depicting carpeted autumn foliage that is so inviting and beautiful that it demands a stroll.  The photo is linked to Corinne Roosevelt Robinson’s poem The Path That Leads to Nowhere and Parkinson states that this image would have provided additional inspiration and validation for her poem.

Parkinson has created a highly original and fascinating book that is a testament to how spiritual words melded with vibrant visual images can help us look at the world anew.  As mentioned in a press release, Parkinson maintains that it’s important that people stay connected to nature, for both spiritual and mental health. With his book, even those of us who are stuck in a world of metal and concrete structures can still enjoy the beauty of the natural world any time by simply turning its pages.

This book is certainly a treasure and it effectively accomplishes what it has set out to do, “to utilize poetry to reinforce and intensify the uplifting feelings derived from viewing the beauty of nature,” as is mentioned in its introduction.

 The above review was contributed by:  NORM GOLDMAN:  Editor of Bookpleasures. Here are more of  Norm Goldman's Reviews       

 To read Norm's Interview with John Parkinson CLICK HERE