Word-pictures crafted by a master artist from everyday moments offer deep reflections on contemporary existence in this poem collection.

I lie and lay my head upon the grass

And unwind the body hardened stiff like glass.

But the tiny blades tickle the lower ear

Making me ask myself, why do I bear

This crass impertinence and sink my head

Still further down its bed of prickly green?

So asks the poet, his ears pressed against the earth as he maps the world around him in a new geography of sound. Places, photographs, books, neighbors, afternoons, love, loss, and longing are sketched into word-pictures by Subramanyan as he reflects, reacts, and reminisces in this collection of poems. These memoir-poems will help throw into relief some of Subramanyan's symbols and motifs, better contextualizing his oeuvre.