Kendall A. Bell’s the forced hush of quiet, is one to read multiple times. It is crafted with expert precision; each poem lingers in the mind with stunning and haunting imagery that creates a powerful yearning within the reader. Bell takes us on a journey of the human experience with pieces like The sweetest honeybee in the hive, a poem that is like consuming a piece of rich chocolate as it slowly melts on the fingertips. In contrast I’ve given up on sunlight, casts a familiar coldness, while at the same time letting the reader know they are not alone. This is a collection to slowly devour and savor. - Marisa Silva-Dunbar, author of #becky