The Crossed-Out Swastika

"Cassells is a passionate poet whose poems touch the core of human connection through which can flow union with the infinite. Highly recommended."Library JournalCyrus Cassells'' fifth book commemorates the blazing integrity of young people caught in the vise of World War II. In its journey through the "anti-miracle" of Europe''s embattled past, The Crossed-Out Swastika follows the lives of historical and semi-fictional characters to unearth and amplify moments of almost impossible music, bravery, beauty, and redemption, illuminating the human spirit against unspeakable tyranny.Poet, from cellar to cellar, I rememberI held onto, of all things,a picture book about a magical goat,inscribed by my witty father:This storybook belongsto Mademoiselle Sabinethe way Paris once belongedto Marie AntoinetteSomehow having that bookhelped me to endure . . .Cyrus Cassells grew up in the Mojave Desert. He graduated from Stanford University and has worked as a translator, film critic, and actor; he currently teaches poetry in the MFA program at Texas State UniversitySan Marcos. He lives in Austin, Texas.