TODAY'S   COUPLES AND THE CELEBRATIONS THEY CHOOSE COME IN MANY VARIETIES

“The Heart of Wedding reconnects the marriage ritual to our twenty-first century lives.  Gerald Fierst, celebrant, poet, and storyteller, fills chapter after chapter with examples of ceremonies showing that weddings need not be Victorian relics, but can be filled with a sense of fun and adventure, as well as common sense.  Acknowledging our multi-cultural nation where people of every race, Faith, and heritage meet and marry, this book celebrates the new America, respecting tradition while finding a contemporary voice to say ‘I do.’  Gerry brings to this book the same care, precision and artistry I have seen him bring to all of his projects. By connecting life’s passages with a larger vision of humanity – past, present and future – Gerry shows us a way to celebrate our families and ourselves.”                  --Susan O’Halloran, Director, RaceBridges, Chicago Illinois

Winner of the 2016 Donald Hall Prize in Poetry

Lauren Clark’s poems move lucidly, depicting beautiful struggles of distrust, dream, grief, and intimacy. They show such conflicts through entrancing narrative drive and song-like abandon. In their unpredictable, unforgettable language, they make pain a tonic for pleasure, sorrow ground for revelation. This is a book that is celebratory, gentle, and queer.