<DIV><p><i>A bemused, stoop-shouldered figure who is more than a mere speaker—let’s call him a protagonist—stalks the poems of</i> Falling to Earth<i>. With candor and an almost grandiose simplicity, Hansen describes the limitations of his middle-aged body and, in so doing, the limitations of his enterprise in mid-life: the gracelessness of survival.</i> Falling to Earth <i>is the journey of a vibrant soul refreshing itself poem by poem.</i>—Molly Peacock, from her foreword</p><p><b>Tom Hansen</b> taught writing and literature for 35 years before retiring to the Black Hills of South Dakota. His credits include <i>Paris Review</i>, <i>The Iowa Review</i>, and <i>The American Scholar</i>.</p></DIV>