The Hushed Willow by Lorna Joy Knox nee Ramsamugh is a collection of poetry that will stir your emotions as you embark on a rollercoaster ride through life. As the title suggests the poetry contained in The Hushed Willow is that of emotions and feelings that are kept silent, feelings of sadness, loss, betrayal and hurt. The author has an exceptional gift of portraying such vivid emotions in such few words and is a joy to read. The words of her poetry flow together so gracefully with images from nature jumping up to meet you as you read.

This book takes us through the many adventures of life and recalls a multitude of emotions on its way. Lorna Knox is an extremely talented poet who endeavours to portray so much in so few words. Lorna uses modern free style poetry but maintains the constant rhythm necessary for great poetry.

Containing so many wonderful works of poetry it is quite difficult to choose a favourite or even favourites, however, one poem that really grabbed my attention was "Despair", this poem contains very powerful emotions especially those in the second verse as the poet describes love as a dream. I was also really taken by the poem "Magic", a short and uplifting collection of words where I found myself smiling as I reached the end. The last two lines of this poem really help to sum up this feeling ? "To sit among a band, That will soothe me into never, never land."

At the end of this wonderful collection of poetry, Ms. Knox has concluded by giving us a taste of her other skills by including a short story titled "Bound in Friendship --- The Story of Two Friends". A remarkable story, well written that tests the boundaries of friendship in a light romantic story.

The Hushed Willow is a must for anyone with lust for poetry. There is a poem for everyone in this book, if you've lived at all you will definitely find a poem to relate to.

Lorna Joy Knox nee Ramsamugh is also the author of "Flames of a Rose" which can be purchased from all major bookstores including Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Amanda Evans is webmaster for http://www.amandawrites.com a website dedicated to helping others achieve their dreams of becoming writers. You can subscribe to the free monthly newsletter Writers Passion. Amanda Evans is also the author of the newly published "From Those Death Left Behind" a collection of poetry and stories describing the grief and emotions of a family that lost a member to suicide. This book can be purchased at http://www.lulu.com/content/120733