Lush Dreams, Blue Exile: Fugitive Poems, 1978-1993

Edward L. Edmonds is a professor of education at the University of
Prince Edward Island.

The poems in this collection, many of which have appeared in various
journals, were chosen by Clarke’s friends. Their predominant
characteristics are intensity of feeling—anger, resentment, despair,
sorrow, regret—and Swiftian irony. Offsetting such moods are two love
poems that exude a lyrical intimacy all of their own. The book is
illustrated with black-and-white photographs; the one accompanying
“Testament” is chillingly evocative. The cover photograph subtly
reinforces the title of the book.