This is the question that stitches an emotional wallop into a geography of cow tank and cattail, udder balm, hot beef sandwiches and a vast, uncluttered sky. Where the world’s largest ball of twine sits beneath the water tower, a lively cast gives shape to the poet’s life: the John Deere implement dealer, Patty the Dog Lady, a hermit, the banker dressed like Elvis, and Orlando, a beloved pig. Told through the voice of a local angel who’s gone organic, non-GMO, these poems celebrate with humor and pathos a lineage of land, beliefs, stories, and community—the family and neighbors who convene for each other in their good clothes. Is it foolish joy?

In a bifurcated America, in the exigency of this moment, of pandemics, and generations in transition, Jeanne Lutz raises intelligent, yet difficult questions through vivid images and lyrical language. Here, we experience the ways decisions and desires collide with and illuminate a sense of longing for the poet, the farm, a people and a nation to be better versions of themselves. Here, she rallies hope and responsibility for leaving behind a finer land and sky for future generations.