Melody in Exile
Melody in Exile, S. T. Brant’s debut collection, argues that not all is lost, and Eden is a state our souls remember and can attain, if we listen and bring our melodies to Harmony. A chorus of voices — gods, Adam and Eve and their revelations out of Eden, Lilith, wanderers around a fire retelling Genesis, King Lear, Orpheus, Dionysus, Hamlet, a Saint from oblivion called back — all contribute to tell the story that we are always singing in divine fire.
Melody in Exile blends the spirit of the Greeks singing to the muses with outtakes from Genesis. Through numbered ecstasies and the violences of memory, these poems search for love in the heart’s empty theater, lamenting “things are most like god in pain.” Full of beseeching prayer and longing for an unnamed you, this collection is a reminder of the sadness of eternity and how a song changes the moment it touches the sea.
— Traci Brimhall
S. T. Brant’s fearless debut collection is a baptismal immersion into a visionary zone of gods and song. This is a poet who sees mythic thresholds everywhere, whose language relishes contradictions, changes in register, vibrant archaic diction. The book feels like the existential battlefield of the Bhagavad Gita: an elemental space of fire, thunder, the soul; a landscape where Earth itself—its “god conscious rains” and “the desert burning the dark around it”—seems awake, almost sentient. The possibility of revelation is always near but, equally, “Things are most like god in pain.” Melody in Exile is lightning in a bottle.
— John Wall Barger, author of Resurrection Fail
Reviews
Reviewed by Diana Lopez
Melody in Exile gives an interpretation of life and soul. S.T. Brant tries to create a sense of Eden using an adaptation of poems and stories. He uses esoteric language and speaks of topics such as moving away from the false illusions of life. This poetry has dark and melancholic tints but a positive attitude toward the search for the truth. Melody in Exile has three parts: it begins with a metaphysical aspect and speaks about topics such as the soul, love, and life. The second part concentrates on Eden and details the ephemeral nature of life. The third part refers to the book title and interprets exile from paradise. In this way, S.T. Brant shares a little of himself, his doubts in difficult moments, his longings, and most importantly, his world vision.
From the moment I saw the image of a work by William Blake on the cover, I knew I had found poetry of great depth. Melody in Exile has well-developed ideas using poetry and stories in the form of myths. In addition, I was pleased that S.T. Brant began with essential topics, such as the soul and the struggle to strengthen it. The narrative is a representation of spiritual life, and through the use of symbolism and allegories, there is much material for reflection. S.T. Brant has a high level of cultural appreciation. The work includes many mythological references and works of great literary poets. I recommend Melody in Exile to an audience with a deep knowledge of poetry and classic literature.
