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Recent Reviews for Barry D Yelton
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Scarecrow in Gray (Book) - 7/13/2008 1:02:38 PM
A North Carolina farmer goes off to fight a war in which he has no stake in this historical novel of the Civil War. It is the final months of a war reaching its inevitable conclusion, and most people know the Southern cause is already lost when Francis Yelton enlists against his better judgment. He is not a slave owner, nor has he any interest in the politics of the failing Confederate government. But the rebel army is desperate for men and if Francis does not volunteer, he will be conscripted. The author’s elegant prose brings a poetic quality to this well-written novel. Francis, an ordinary but insightful man, sees the beauty of the land around him more clearly than most and recognizes the devastation of war as a grievous insult to the Earth and its Maker. He questions his reasons for being on the battlefield, comparing himself to a leaf floating in a river: “The leaf doesn’t have a say in where it’s going. It just goes because a greater power takes it.” While Francis reluctantly shoulders his musket to shoot men just like himself, he worries about his home and his family, who must survive in a hostile world without him. Thanks to General Sherman’s “scorched earth policy,” Francis knows exactly what the enemy could do to his farm. But Southern deserters and outlaws pose just as great a threat. Scarecrow in Gray is a worthy read – the story of a war already lost and the men who knowingly served the losing side in defense of the land and the people they loved.
Scarecrow in Gray (Book) - 10/22/2007 9:39:17 AM
Barry Yelton's first novel is a fictional account of a Rebel soldier's experience in the last year of the Civil War. The account is emotionally harrowing in its realism, and the lead character and his companions display a dose of unexpected, genuine compassion, even toward the boys in blue. The author has offered a brief but accurate sample of what it probably was really like to experience America's darkest time. Civil War buffs will certainly want to add Scarecrow in Gray to their collections. Read the excerpt reprinted on this page and see what you think.
The Ever Present Past (Article) - 9/10/2007 1:21:18 PM
That is a wonderful picture. I can almost smell the shaving cream now.
The Gray Child (Poetry) - 11/24/2009 1:34:05 PM
A well written poem.I enjoy reading it.take care
The Gray Child (Poetry) - 11/21/2009 8:36:48 PM
Outstanding life span in poetry Barry. The child ids always the child, even in us adults we recall when. The sadness is painful here.
Blessings and love,
Susan
The Gray Child (Poetry) - 11/21/2009 8:15:18 PM
No matter the numbers, it is always how you feel....
Be always safe,
Karen
The Gray Child (Poetry) - 11/21/2009 6:56:32 AM
Living in a retirement center gives me the perfect picture of what you have described quite nicely in your writing.
Cheers,
Dan
Light in the Far Distance (Poetry) - 11/11/2009 5:07:25 PM
profoundly constructed metaphysical query ...
Light in the Far Distance (Poetry) - 11/9/2009 3:29:46 AM
I love reading this work.A well written and excellent piece.take good care of yourself.
EDWIN
Light in the Far Distance (Poetry) - 11/8/2009 6:49:12 PM
I can't hold my own with science so I can read and barely take in anything written on the subject however...the way you put words together gives me light on the subject. I anjoyed all of these poems. They are beautiful and collectively, educational for me.
Susan
Sundown on Grassy Knob (Poetry) - 8/12/2009 7:19:52 PM
Such magnificent beauty wrapped with a spirit of freedom, well said...
Be always safe,
Karen
Occupo Dies Quod Capto Deus (Poetry) - 6/26/2009 2:57:00 PM
A powerful poem that sweeps humanity away as if we were but pollen in the wind being carried toward a blast furnace. The message should be live each moment as if it is your last but live it in health just in case you have a lot of moments left.
Night and the Solar Wind (Poetry) - 3/24/2009 3:11:22 PM
I saw this poem as God defined as if He were the solar winds and maybe He is since He may have never walked what we call the earth in human form.
Night and the Solar Wind (Poetry) - 3/16/2009 4:34:21 AM
WONDERFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!! ''May it be, strange wind, as you course ''.... FROM THIS SENTENCE TO THE END----------HEAVENLY BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE THEM!!!!!!!!!!! Liana Margiva
Night and the Solar Wind (Poetry) - 3/15/2009 2:04:08 PM
Barry,
A lovely prayer of hope for Man. There is good in all of us.
Mary
Coney Island Lunch (Poetry) - 2/11/2009 6:38:59 PM
Excellent poem,I enjoy reading it,take care
Edwin
Coney Island Lunch (Poetry) - 2/9/2009 1:15:22 PM
Taking a stroll back in time, sometimes bringing happy thoughts that linger, sometimes a little bittersweet. I do remember Coney Island and the rabbits it was named for, but that was then and it is all but gone now, endearing words....
Be always safe,
Karen
Coney Island Lunch (Poetry) - 2/9/2009 11:27:43 AM
Enjoyable...ed
Big Smith (Poetry) - 11/18/2008 10:06:13 PM
Very well done, war stories of heart and valor are rare and seldom done as well as this. Enjoyed the story.
Fee
Big Smith (Poetry) - 11/18/2008 9:06:49 PM
It's so great to read well-written historical poems like this, and anyone who knows and likes history could see the work and time you put into this.
Big Smith (Poetry) - 11/17/2008 6:05:16 PM
Wow, you have truly captured the sentiments that dwelled within as the pain lingered on though the fighting had ended. Yet, life does go on doesn't it and you have captured that well too.....
Be always safe,
Karen
The Politician Speaks or The Abominable Non Sequitur (Poetry) - 10/10/2008 5:59:22 AM
a totally bleak look at the political situation in the states --- it is not much different here we've had three general elections in four years resulting in two minority governments, probably the current election will again return a minority. "vanity all is vanity"
good write
john+
Hallelujah Breakdown (Poetry) - 8/18/2008 6:20:13 PM
Love your enthusiasm for life, especially life outdoors! I'll have to check out the local crows more carefully; I never thought of them as flopping across the sky like teenagers.
Connie
A Mule Named Dawg (and a Dog Named Myool) (Poetry) - 8/18/2008 6:16:45 PM
A great, funny story!
Connie
Hallelujah Breakdown (Poetry) - 8/18/2008 4:15:47 AM
I do pray for us to be here every day. Glad when I wake up in morning alive. You said it right on here. Enjoy your life, life is so very short. For many poeple way way too short. Hallelujah.
Adios, Minnie Mouse (Poetry) - 8/1/2008 2:52:23 PM
I love this!!!! What a great story you told here in this poem. I know first hand about those costumes, lol,as I worked at Barnes & Noble for years and was talked into dressing up as Courduroy bear and i almost hyperventilated, those costumes are so close and so hot, lol!! This goes to my library.
Now the Dawn (Poetry) - 7/18/2008 8:20:50 PM
Haunting and absorbing.
Now the Dawn (Poetry) - 7/18/2008 7:29:45 PM
Excellent I often wait for the dawn...
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