Marly Youmans is an American poet, novelist and short story writer. Her work reflects certain recurring themes such as nature, magic, faith and redemption, and often references visual art. THE BOOK OF THE RED KING is a long sequence of formal poems centered around the Fool, the Red King, and the Fool's beloved. The videos below are made for the Cathedral Arts Blog by Marly herself. Learn more about Marly and enter a drawing for her most recent book by clicking the link below.
Two poems of arrival from THE BOOK OF THE RED KING (Phoenicia Publishing, 2019).THE BOOK OF THE RED KING is a long sequence of formal poems centered around the Fool, the Red King, and the Fool's beloved, Precious Wentletrap.
The Cloud Like a Child from THE BOOK OF THE RED KING (Phoenicia Publishing, 2019). This poem, drawn from THE BOOK OF THE RED KING, is especially fitting for our time because it is a story about a time of plague. And it might well be one of the stories that the Fool hears and tells while in the Red Kingdom with its King and with the Fool's illusory love, Precious Wentletrap.
The Fool as Gilgamesh from THE BOOK OF THE RED KING (Phoenicia Publishing, 2019). The Book of the Red King contains an account of the Fool's dark beginnings, his difficult journey to the Red King's castle, his transformation, and his friendship with the Red King and love for the mysterious Precious Wentletrap.
Marly Youmans is brilliant, perhaps a genius. Her poems tell a story, offering us a vision of, well, I would say the Trinity, but that is only one possible interpretation. After a difficult and sometimes dangerous journey, a Red King, a Fool, and Precious Wentletrap converge into one, a resurrection that is heavenly. Is it true, or is it fable or fairytale? "When I want to write a new book," she has said, "I run across the land and leap off the edge of the known world." Her formal poems are impeccable and include sestinas, villanelles, rondels, rhyming schemes she may have invented, and perfect metrical patterns. Every poet can learn from this poet, and the reader—the reader will be spellbound."
—Kelly Cherry, poet, novelist, and former Poet Laureate of Virginia