These quiet meditations offer lovely moments of clarity and expansion that "sew / history to future / with the fine needle of heart." In the poet's words, they are a "preface of hope." - Susan McMaster, Poet and Editor Bruce Kauffman writes of seeing "with a naked heart" - a phrase that encapsulates much of this striking new collection. These are tough little poems that grapple with life's paradoxes and with mortality itself; but they also undulate and whisper and resonate with a graceful silence. Kauffman's is ultimately a poetry of renewal and expansiveness. His poet's eye ranges from low to high, from insects to hawks - and beyond, to Poe's raven. And in all of this, the forest is never far away. These poems get under your skin and stay there. - Jeanette Lynes, Author of Archive of the Undressed "In The Silence Before the Whisper Comes, Bruce Kauffman transports readers to those hushed moments in which we experience a profound and often unsettling connection to the earth and our place in it. The blueness of the sky, a woman braiding her hair, the song of the wind - Kauffman takes everyday moments and infuses them with reflection, yearning and poignant beauty." - Clelia Scala, Editorial Director for The Open Book Foundation