Between Them a Universe

Between Them a Universe is a poetry collection about the two kinds of relationships we can have as human beings. The theme of the poems in the chapbook's first part. An Opened Palm, is the universe of relationships we can have with each other. The theme in the second part, Conditions for Grace, is the universe of our relationships with the nonhuman world. The chapbook contains 14 poems, including free verse poetry and poems about love and longing. by happy coincidence, 14 is the number of the lines in a classic love poem, the sonnet.

John Barr grew up in a rural township outside Chicago. An honors graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Business School, he served on Navy destroyers for five years, including one hurricane, three tours to Vietnam, and a voyage around the world. His poems have appeared in the New York Times, Poetry, and Flaunt Magazine, among many periodicals, and in anthologies published by Bloodaxe Books, National Geographic, and the Anthology of Magazine Verse and Yearbook of American Poetry. He was president of the Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine, for its first decade. His recent book, The Boxer of Quirinal, was a finalist for the PEN/Voelcker Award for inviting readers to contemplate the connections. The Boxer of Quirinal was a finalist for the PEN/Voelcker Award for Poetry Collection in 2024. He resides in Greenwich, CT.