in the glint of broken glass
A chronology, a year of poems and prayers, meditations and sorrows, a call to slow down and truly honor the profound sadness, discomfort and distress in the uncertainty of a global pandemic. It reflects that part of me endlessly searching for pinpricks of light despite the angst, and finding myself in the stillness of a life that is, indeed, still quite beautiful.
Cover art by Amy Bruce
Book design by Carolyn Sheltraw
Author photo by Lesley Bohm
Available for purchase!
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Praise for
in the glint of broken glass
Fiercely beautiful and politically poignant, Sue Ann Gleason writes the kinds of poems you can’t turn away from, nor would you want to. These poems are medicine for the people, for all of us who have stumbled through the last few years — the pandemic and its soundtrack of divisive politics, authoritarianism, violence, disdain for nature and the climate.
These poems are elegant and direct. Sue Ann takes to the page the way a swordswoman picks up her sword: eyes poised, heart open, never missing the mark, never mincing words, always letting us know exactly what she sees, while keeping an eye out for beauty, which is everywhere, and might even save us.
Laurie Wagner
27 Powers
Sue Ann Gleason’s poetry touches me deeply. She captures the beauty and angst of modern life, in stanzas that are luminous & accessible. Her celebration of the natural world and the delights of home serve as counterpoints to the chaotic political and pandemic landscape that we also inhabit.
Susann Gerstein
Community Activist and Founding President of the Reston Historic Trust & Museum
The poems in In the Glint of Broken Glass are visual and heartfelt. I found myself nodding in affirmation as I read. There is both a personal reality and a shared reality when a nation experiences an event like Covid-19. Sue Ann walks us through both. Like so many, she found solace on walks and in nature which her poems reflect so beautifully. It’s a tale of difficult, uncertain times with flashes of determination and hope.
Caren Albers
author of Homecoming, Happiness Junkie and Married to a Vegan
Sue Ann Gleason’s collection of writing has the spark and crackle of flint—she is feisty and unsparing in her critique of modern politics and the social ills of these times—and yet there’s a gustatory fleshiness moving through these poems and narrative works, as if she’s reminding us to breathe, to eat, to listen to the birds and “watch for the light in the magic hour,” to enjoy and take care of each other. In the Glint of Broken Glass offers an intimate, provocative and reflective commentary of pandemic uncertainty, but it equally holds the timeless pleasure and nourishment of the “tiny luminous moment[s]” that remind us of the daily blessings of living. Reading, one feels companioned in a journey that could so easily fall into isolation; Sue Ann’s buffet of words feels awash in plenitude, truth, and—dare I say—hope.
Maya Stein
author of The Poser, 38 Portraits Reimagined
This is a magnificent work in service to life and to our legacy — I couldn’t stop reading it. (When was the last time you couldn’t stop reading a book of poetry?)
In the Glint of Broken Glass is an extraordinary anthology. Sue Ann’s writing is a snapshot in words through a brilliant lens of perception, capturing the full spectrum of subtle details, resolute shadows, and the brash palette of a world gone mad. Her poetry carries us into the heart of human existence, the living pulsation of what we lived in 2020. Yet, rather than finding the horror we imagine, we are carried into the nature of existence, the dimensionality of our human story. The beautiful and the terrible. I will be sharing this book with my entire family and asking them to pass it on to their children. This is the snapshot of 2020 I want to leave future generations.
Kathleen Prophet
author of Archetypal Astrology, Tales of the Wild Mother and Myths of her Finno-Ugric Ancestor
This collection is a penetrating shaft of light illuminating a path through the darkness of these times, to recognize moments of awe waiting to surprise us and “bring us to our knees.”
Robin Staadecker, Ph.D
Many years ago, a therapist asked me a question I’ve carried ever since: How do you move through fear? The pandemic, and now Sue Ann Gleason’s extraordinary debut collection, returned me to that question and offered, if not an answer, two things perhaps more powerful than answers: Companionship in exploring a sometimes unfathomable landscape of isolation, loss, and uncertainty, and a reminder that showing up to the page is one way of moving through fear that never lets us down.
The poems here, many inspired by other poets, add to a collective conversation that chronicles how to stay connected to the humanity of our own aching hearts amidst so much soul-crushing news. Without sugarcoating despair or bypassing anger, Gleason’s spacious, deeply attentive poems tether her — and her readers — to what remains beautiful and hopeful in the brokenness. I am so grateful this book exists and will return to it often for courage and comfort alike.
Jena Schwartz
author of Don’t Miss This and The Inside of Out
About the Author
Sue Ann Gleason grew up in Buffalo, New York, in the arms of an Italian American immigrant family who shaped her young mind and gave her perspectives and memories that you will see sprinkled throughout this book. She is a writer, a teacher, and an activist. Sue Ann holds inspired writing circles and organizes grassroots efforts, nurturing both individuals and agents for change in an increasingly complex world.
