Jonah Winter is best-known as a children's author and illustrator, having published books such as Diego, Once Upon a Time in Chicago, and Frida. However, he is also a poet and has published poems in a number of journals. Maine, his first book of poems, was published in 2002 and his second collection Amnesia won the Field Poetry Prize.
Sestina: Bob
In this humorous poem, the speaker introduces a character called Bob, who he describes as being an "English professor," and as being "tall, bearded, reserved." The speaker is seemingly jealous of Bob, as he is seeing his ex-girlfriend. The speaker humorously mocks the elusive Bob, whilst also revealing his own insecurities and inadequacies.
Psalm
Psalm is another poem written by Winter and describes the different kinds of prayers seen in daily life. He begins by describing seemingly banal activities such as "emptying the trash" and "going to sleep at night" as being a manifestation of prayers, suggesting that we do not have to physically speak about our wishes in order to express them.
