As Earth Begins to End

In her twelfth collection, Patricia Goedicke explores-without sentimentality-the complexities of aging and human relationships.

"Goedicke's poems have a hard, truthful ring, like parables of survival."-Harper's

"Spare, tender, complex, this moving collection of poems tells the story of two people in love throughout their adult lives, and the changes and challenges the passage of time visits upon them."-Chicago Tribune

"In the past, Goedicke has written tender verses on tough subjects, including her mother's cancer and her own. Now out of the death of her husband she has produced what must have been by far her most difficult book to write, and it is her best. These poems will move any reader who cares to read them."-Houston Chronicle

"The sober yet visionary world she discovers amids loss is one of the hardest for any poet to encounter. Goedicke pulls it off with simple and startling language that does not seek sympathy, but infinite understanding."-Bloomsbury Review

Patricia Goedicke has published twelve volumes of poetry which have earned an impressive range of recognition, including a New York Times Notable Book of the Year and a William Carlos Williams Award. She lives in Missoula and teaches at the University of Montana.