About
Greek mythology, schools of psychology, and a child growing up on Oxford Street create the structure for this collection of poems where childhood emotions are explored. The poetic intersection of myth, reality, and analysis offer the hermeneutic framework to unravel “powerlessness” and “fear” of a child. The collection opens to a six-year-old boy’s world on “Oxford Street” where the reader enters the boy’s home, discovers the rooms, and unlocks the symbols. The mythical figure of Apollo that runs parallel to Oxford Street connects to—and disconnects from—the Greek pantheon of gods in the restructured family relation of gods. Apollo experiences freedom in the open fields of Thessaly but restraint triggered by thoughts of Hestia and Zeus. Interpreting Oxford Street in terms of the relation between the powerlessness and fear of a child, Freud, Jung, Maslow, Adler, Erikson, Sullivan are included in the poetry as avenues of revisiting childhood.
Endorsements
"David Bellusci's latest poetry explores the intricate dynamics of family relationships and their influence on a child's psyche. The author crafts a masterful take of two parallel and interwined representations centered on the inherent sacredness of the family. Oxford Street is a fascinating exploration of the family as the primary form and foundataion of human connection and emotions, told with intense spirituality, power, and elegance."
Anna Foschi Ciampolini, co-founder, Association of Italian-Canadian Writers
“David Bellusci’s Oxford Street offers a rich poetry collection taking the reader on a reflective journey of childhood and how images/reflections/events are stored in the memory. Through memory, myth, and psychology, the reader probes the mystery of childhood - the fears and needs that are created. Oxford Street challenges the reader on a provocative journey of personal reflection and discovery."
Lara Paniagua, education consultant child psychologist
"David Bellusci's Oxford Street choreographs a resplendent dance of destiny among the mythic, the psychoanalytic, and the everyday. In moving lyrical images, a counter-punctual poetic drama unfolds that reveals the grandeur of childhood, its mysteries, its terrors, its fleeting consolations, and its fragile singularity that glows with hope. Enchanting and thought-provoking, Oxford Street is a delightful read."
Melinda Kingsbury, sessional instructor of English literature, Catholic Pacific Collège
Anna Foschi Ciampolini, co-founder, Association of Italian-Canadian Writers
“David Bellusci’s Oxford Street offers a rich poetry collection taking the reader on a reflective journey of childhood and how images/reflections/events are stored in the memory. Through memory, myth, and psychology, the reader probes the mystery of childhood - the fears and needs that are created. Oxford Street challenges the reader on a provocative journey of personal reflection and discovery."
Lara Paniagua, education consultant child psychologist
"David Bellusci's Oxford Street choreographs a resplendent dance of destiny among the mythic, the psychoanalytic, and the everyday. In moving lyrical images, a counter-punctual poetic drama unfolds that reveals the grandeur of childhood, its mysteries, its terrors, its fleeting consolations, and its fragile singularity that glows with hope. Enchanting and thought-provoking, Oxford Street is a delightful read."
Melinda Kingsbury, sessional instructor of English literature, Catholic Pacific Collège