Swan Bones

Swan Bones is a book about small towns and the people who inhabit them. Its poems follow the author from the hills of the Mohawk Valley to the cornfields of East Central Indiana, where she's lived for nearly a decade. They deal in everyday ironies, and it is in these spaces that Bowman crafts a unique vision defined by her stark honesty, distinctive lyricism, and persistent hope. She proffers quartz crystals despite layoffs; moonflowers, which only open when night falls. The poems practice a hard faith, and invite us to do the same.


""Bethany Bowman's Swan Bones carries in its pith both animated mystery and inquisitive myth, the spiritual flavors of 'portents, prophesies, the book of Revelation' as well as of blueberries that 'know a wish has come true.' Situated in a Mohawk Valley childhood that evolves into a rural Indiana adulthood, Bowman's language is precise and imaginative, and her elucidative landscapes enhance every poem; so like the 'Lamb's ear, rose-hip, orange peel, [and] cinnamon' in the potpourri Bowman writes about, we want this book to last, as its 'essence releases slowly.'""
--Julie Moore, author of Full Worm Moon and Particular Scandals

""These are poems of home--the flowers, church yards, family tables, and alleyways that continue to shape our lives even as our addresses change. Bowman breathes life into the 'big haunted souls' of small towns and memories, calling us to consider our own histories with tenderness and awe. This collection is a gorgeous debut worthy of several, savoring reads.""
--Tania Runyan, author of Second Sky and What Will Soon Take Place

""Swan Bones is an unflinching search for stability, beauty, and identity, centering on Bowman's mutable relationship with her hometown. She asks pressing questions and prays low-lit prayers, casting her net into the past and present--the Mohawk and Salamonie rivers. In doing so, she captures long winters, encounters with ghosts, and ultimately a spirit of forgiveness, which now blooms in the Midwest.""
--JAE NEWMAN, author of Collage of Seoul


Bethany Bowman is a nature lover and writer. Originally from New York's Mohawk Valley, she currently lives in Indiana with her husband and two children and teaches ESL classes at Taylor University. Swan Bones is her first collection of poems.