If Not in Heaven, Then in Saugerties: A Town Portrait in Poems

April 2020, National Poetry Month—but not in Saugerties, New York, a ghost town due to the pandemic lockdown. Haunted by the vacant village, Will Nixon began putting his fears and hopes into poems inspired by the galleries, stores, restaurants, bars, and nature preserves that make Saugerties unique. This collection includes the stories behind many of the poems—some funny, some sad, all revealing that a small town can set the stage for life’s most significant events.

Softcover with a trim size of 8 inches by 8 inches, 107 pages, and artwork by Joanne Pagano Weber (portraits of people from Saugerties, some of whom appear in Will’s poems). Published in 2024 by Bushwhack Books. ISBN: 9780578104829.

On the cover, top row left to right: Tim Scott and Tad Richards, who holds a sculpture of Leda and the Swan by Harvey Fite. Bottom row, left to right: Robert Langdon, Unidentified, Pastor Deborah Zuill, Brittany Barnard, Rae Stang, and Harry Barot.

Tad Richards/Opus 40, Robert Langdon/Emerge Gallery, Rae Stang/Lucky Chocolates, and Harry Barot/Speedy Mart are connected to the poems. Tim Scott is president of the Board of Trustees at Saugerties Library. Pastor Deborah Zuill serves at the Katsbaan Reformed Church, and Brittany Barnard works for New York State Assemblymember Sarahana Shrestha.

Reviews:

“A collection of love letters about Saugerties straight from Will Nixon’s wildly poetic heart.”

                  ~Katie Cokinos, writer and film director

“Saugerties, the final frontier. These are the cerebral voyages of the poet Will Nixon. His mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no mind has gone before! A synapse expanding bardic tour to the heart and soul of Saugerties. Take this literary journey and experience our town like you never have before!”

                  ~Brian Donoghue, proprietor of Inquiring Minds Bookstore & Gallery

About Will Nixon:

Will Nixon has published Acrostic Woodstock, another town portrait in poems, and The Pocket Guide to Woodstock. He also co-authored Walking Woodstock: Journeys into the Wild Heart of America’s Most Famous Small Town, a local favorite, with Michael Perkins.