Setting the Waves on Fire

Arlice W. Davenport was 17 in a high school English class when he read "In Just-" by E. E. Cummings. He was amazed at how words could bounce, skip and zing across the page; how the poet could twist and turn spacing, punctuation and syntax to create an innovative meaning that was intentional, straight from the heart. He knew that this, too, was what he wanted to do with language. And he has been writing poetry ever since-although his poetic forms and sensibilities have matured beyond a 17 year old's awe. Still, that awe sticks with him. And he has never signed his name in upper-case.Davenport, a lifelong Wichitan, is the retired Travel editor and Books Page editor for The Wichita Eagle. With his wife, Laura, he has explored Europe more than 30 times. He has had poems published in the (erstwhile) Osage Review, River City Poetry, and on AllPoetry, the world's largest poetry website. This is his first book of poems.