The poems in Back Cut are set in the Pacific Northwest, particularly
Washington State. The time is immediately after WWII, when the heyday of
logging and harvesting razor clams has passed and people eke out a
living on what is left of these natural resources. Back Cut is a love
story. Through alternating monologues, husband and wife reveal
themselves. He is a veteran who fought in Europe and now battles
addiction. She has largely withdrawn from family and community. The
narrative contrasts the romantic view of the fabled rain forest and
mythic ocean with the reality of being human in the Northwest grays and
rains. Solitary humans have little power in the face of dominant nature.
In these poems husband and wife are dedicated to an abiding love lived
out on a fretwork of personal disquiet. The couple's inner thoughts and
feelings and the physical environment are detailed with both woe and
humor. The poems describe living in a cabin, lighting a wood stove,
jarring clams, digging potatoes, helping neighbors, cutting floral
greens, sitting in a tavern, and touching each other. To the husband and
wife, each sensual detail can be a prick or a joy.
