A Dream in the Night - 2nd Edition
- Category: Poetry » Contemporary Poetry
- Category: Poetry » Themes & motifs » General
- Published: March 13, 2012
- Words: 9,230
- Language: English
- ISBN: 9781476155678
My first book, "A Dream in the Night", began as one poem / song: Goodbye. Written when I was 15, after the death of a friend. The entire design and every word are a part of my spirit and soul. 25 years are in this book, a long journey on a road that has ended. One life spent looking back. One ghost who believed they only belonged in the shadows.
"Memories faded. Ghosts laid to rest. One life, over. A darkphoenix has risen from the ashes of a fresh grave."
What began as writing music reviews for fun, evolved into something serious.
My second book: "In a Valley... A Writer's New Beginning" began the journalist side of my writing. I live in the Lehigh Valley, Pa area. In January, 2012 I started noticing the local side: music, arts, events, businesses, etc. Everything that makes the area different and unique. I started with music reviews and constantly evolve and expand what I write about. Like "A Dream in the Night"; I did the entire book from front to back cover, with one exception: John and Sheri contributed photos.
Several, failed, attempts at picking up freelancing jobs (local) later. I decided to start up an online magazine. I seriously looked at everything I wrote: my style / categories / genres, etc. I figured it was time to kick everything up a level. I wanted to do something different. A Valley and Beyond was born.
2012 started a new life for me.
I feel at home walking the streets or in an art gallery. I still like the shadows, but now, I fade into them when I choose. A new book and story has begun. How it will be written, I have no idea. No person knows what will happen from one moment to the next.
I wrote all this for one reason: I want to know that what you see with me is real. The person in the photos is who you would see on the street. The words written are who you would talk to. I know professionalism sells books and everything. My style, to a point: Realism, the moment as it happens, is more believable and is never repeated. One last thing, a quote I live by and is great advice to everyone.
"Life is not about what we do. It's about who we are. Never losing sight of our dreams. Having the courage to go after them, not matter what the odds. Believing in our dreams and ourselves, even when no one else does."
Be safe in the night and always,
Michael Phoenix
Almost forgot: mandatory tradtional bio part:
I currently call the Allentown, Pa area my home, for now. Hobbies: walking, reading, rock music, trying new things and ideas, writing, etc. Current projects: continuing the journalist side, writing my first fiction novel, recording my first single, Writing an album. Personal history: currently writing / living / trying new things. Favorite colors: red, black, blue and purple depending on my mood. Style of dress: jeans / sneakers / t-shirt or dress shirt / leather jacket.
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Reviews of A Dream in the Night - 2nd Edition by Michael Phoenix
I think that most poetry comes from a very personal place, but this one more so than others that I have read. It is very dark and obviously from the heart. That is where the darkest of stories come from. I have to give this one 5 out 5 stars for being so incredibly honest with its readers.
My impression of this book was that this was going to be about reflections of life in general, this is true, but this is a very personal journey by Michael. The book took me too on this journey along with him.
I found the poetry, well for me it is more then poetry, it is words that have a living feeling, a living memory, with imagery of each piece easily brought to mind. Going along each chapter, the words, to me, grew stronger in feeling as I progressed through the book.
All the while reading this, I felt a sense of strength and positiveness. The words are encouraging. They have a way of speaking to you with such depth of meaning. Some are dark, but they are dark for reasons that can be read in this book.
Michael asks the reader to take away something from this book and I have. There are two words I am taking from this book and they are 'Warrior' and 'Courage'
It is a beautiful moving book, a book with heart and soul. Thought provoking. I highly recommend it.
Thank you Michael.
The book is not what I thought it would be. At first glance, I thought a book of poems would be all poems and light-hearted. This is far from it. It touches a raw nerve with each section. We are given a glimpse into the author’s mind, perhaps his soul, about events in his life and how he has been affected by them. His sadness is apparent in his opening poems and his anger comes forth in his darker ones. But the book is not entirely about despair either. The ‘Warrior’ poems are a theme that is constant throughout the chapters and it is here that the author leaves the reader with a sense of hope. The warrior prefers the night, the darkness, over the light of day. A warrior finds his strength in the darkness, but in the daylight, has no need of extra courage.
Like I said, the book is not what I thought it would be, but once I started reading it, I didn’t stop until I was finished. Without thinking about it, I placed myself in each of Michael’s poems. His style allowed the reader to see and feel what he wrote. The format of several poems, combined with seemingly random statements, combined with a few short stories is not traditional, but worked very well for this type of story. And by the end of the book, the poems and statements which seemed in random order fall neatly into place. I highly recommend this book to anyone and look forward to reading more by Michael Phoenix!
“Life is the hardest game
Anyone can play
It keeps changing the rules
With the dawn
of each new day”
I can honestly say “A Dream In The Night” was nothing like what I expected. This book is an eerie combination of verse, thoughts and short stories – moments in the author’s life – challenging, unanswered questions and emotion. So much emotion.
Yes, it is dark, and yes, it is raw. But in this autobiographical tale Michael takes us on a journey full of scenes most of us will have only glimpsed from afar. “Everyone has their own wars to fight, [...] Everyone has their own scars to hide.” How true and insightful, yet how easy to disregard in our rush to live. How many of us ever stop to wonder exactly how we live our lives, what makes it what it is and whether there is any way to influence it and make it belong to us? In going about our daily business, how often do we wonder whose lives we also touch? Or if that person we shoved out of our way may be struggling under a burden no man should be allowed to carry on his own?
There are words about friendship and society, love and memories, night and dreams. There is rebellion against the numbing effects of living in a world such as ours and what it turns us into. You’re left repeating Michael’s words again and again “Sometimes life gives us no choice.”
A Dream In The Night is not a collection of happy stories, but it gives hope to those who need it most. It is unconventional, and I like that very much – it is one attribute the traditionally published books do not seem to have anymore, that spark that makes a work different. I also like the fact that Michael has poured his heart and soul into it – not just a few weeks’ worth of it, but years and years. He changed and he allowed us to see that. He was hurt and he let us see his pain. Now on his feet, scarred warrior, he’s here to share his tale.
If you pick up this book, approach it with an open mind and don’t rush. Read it through, and then read it again. Once you’ve done that, you can begin to think. If your thoughts make you feel a touch uncomfortable, stop there. Get a drink, take a walk, and then see what you can do about making someone’s life a little better.
A deeply personal reflection of love, hate, life and death. Poetry to make you think about times in your own life and how you came through them on the other side. Not a black and white version of what should be, just a guideline to give you direction. Michael Phoenix allows us to explore with him as he tries to figure out just where he fits in all of this stuff called life.
I really enjoyed this collection of poetry and thoughts. I felt many of these same things when I lost three different people in my life at different times. I thank Michael Phoenix for sharing some of his deepest emotions and thoughts with us as he works through it all. This is one you'll refer to again and again. It's timeless when it comes to life and death. Easy to read and yet more complicated than anything you'll ever deal with, this book has it all. I recommend this to anyone but especially to those struggling.
I found no issues with this one.
I gave this one 5 out of 5 books because of its unique way of saying what we all feel at one time or another.