By Amanda Passmore-Ott. Finishing Line Press, 2024.

Human Wilderness contains poems that explore the tension between human nature and the natural world through deep observation and reflection. The title of the collection suggests the exploration of nature leads to an even deeper exploration of what it means to be human as the poems take the reader on a lyric journey of loss, longing, becoming, understanding, and acceptance. Ultimately, Human Wilderness is a potential for metamorphosis.

Amanda Passmore-Ott teaches writing at The Pennsylvania State University and lives in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania. Her poems can be found in such journals as Tiny Seed Literary Journal, Blueline: A literary Magazine Dedicated to the Spirit of the Adirondacks, Albatross, Wavelength, and Calliope: A Journal of Women’s Literature and Art.