Ed Roberts reports his new book, Whispers, Tears, Prayers, and Hope has released and is now available on Amazon.com. (They have even marked it down)http://www.amazon.com/Whispers-Tears-Prayers-Hope-Roberts/dp/0976678772/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1227828536&sr=8-1
The publisher submitted a draft copy in October to be considered for the Pulitzer Prize in Verse and it has also been sent to the Oklahoma Center for the Book to be considered for the Oklahoma Book Award.
Being in contention for these awards is a great honor, but, notes the author, this book can help a lot of people; many of the poems in the book already have.
"There is a special poem at the back of the book titled “Ink in the Storm” after which people can read around 20 pages of comments people have left on my poetry site. (I have saved over 200 pages of these.) This comment appears on the back cover, it is from the poem “Trying to Understand the Bombing.” (The poem is in this book.) “a friend of mine here at university of Amman shared with me your poetry i was PLO i was going to be terrorist by stopping me you have saved many i am returning to my people now in desert to allow sand and wind to wash away my shame my friend has shown several all he risk to do so many will never know he met you year ago you saved him he saved me now”
"In 2005, I was 1 of 10 poets chosen to represent the US at a poetry festival that was held in Amman, Jordan. I am amazed and very glad they are still sharing my poetry there." Ed Roberts notes with modesty :"I am just an average person; I work here in Oklahoma City at a call center. Sometimes though, I get to live some extra-ordinary moments".
