Alan Bern

No No the Saddest Alan Bern

This collection is the nightmarish narrative of a crucial episode in the poet's life. After a few introductory poems establishing a strong romantic and loving relationship with his pregnant wife, Lynn, the calm disappears with what first appears to be a headache. As the poems progress, it becomes apparent that Lynn has had an aneurism. She has brain surgery, and she lapses into a coma from which she will never awake. The poems describe the anguish of living with a loved one who is lost to the world. She does not die. In fact, she carries their baby to full term and gives birth to a healthy son of whom she will never be aware. After a few years, Lynn dies, the boy grows, and the poet, Alan, eventually finds another love. He writes, He heals.