WHEN BREATH
WAS DRINK
FOR GHOSTS
ABOUT THE BOOK
When Breath Was Drink for Ghosts will resonate with those who seek solace in the guiding light of the classical ideal of transcendant beauty. This collection captures the life of one man wading toward this light through a sea of struggle, inviting the reader who longs for depth to come with him on a personal journey over thirty years in the making. Strayer dives into universal questions of faith, love, loss, and the meaning of life as he draws wisdom from the ancient past, finds the wonder in modern life, and muses on the not-so-distant future with speculative narrative poetry on artificial intelligence. Strayer pens poems of subtle philosophical complexity 'for those who have ears to hear' while remaining accessible to those who just want to escape the babble and noise of everyday life. When Breath Was Drink For Ghosts invites readers to reflect on and remember what it means to live deeply.
AUTHOR
Peter Strayer
Peter Strayer is an eclectic artist and communicator with works spanning several disciplines and genres, most notably as a poet, musician, producer, songwriter, orchestral composer and business leader. His musical works have been featured on award-winning albums and films. He is the writer of over 1000 musical compositions, numerous short stories, screenplays and hundreds of poems.
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When Breath Was Drink for Ghosts is a meditation on love, loss, faith, and the aching beauty of life. In this collection of 200 poems, Peter Strayer offers a voice that is both deeply personal and universal. His verse moves like memory—sometimes sharp and immediate, sometimes blurred and elusive—pulling the reader into a journey that refuses to follow a straight path. It is nonlinear yet profoundly structured, much like the human soul itself.
At the heart of Strayer’s work lies a reckoning with pain and the longing for redemption. Soliloquy Three (Sonnet 84), for example, paints a haunting portrait of regret, exploring the irreversible weight of choice. Through stark and visceral imagery—wounds that refuse to heal, blood seeping into spoken words—he captures the agony of lost dreams and the restless search for solace. His poetry does not turn away from suffering; it meets it head-on, with honesty that is both bracing and compassionate.
Yet this collection is far more than an elegy to sorrow. Strayer’s work, though steeped in somber reflection and grief, carries a quiet but persistent promise of renewal. His words reach for beauty, for transcendence, for those fleeting moments that remind us why life is worth enduring. His pastoral poems celebrate the steady rhythms of nature—the hush of morning, the wind moving over fields, the sacredness of ordinary things. His love poems, tender and unguarded, explore both the strength and fragility of the human heart. His spiritual poetry wrestles with doubt and belief, with the tension between silence and revelation, offering no easy answers but inviting the reader to dwell in the mystery.
Strayer’s verse is at once accessible and layered, drawing from classical, philosophical, and spiritual traditions while remaining deeply rooted in the modern world speaking directly to the wounds of our age—the fragmentation, the longing for meaning, the quiet desperation for something real. As fellow poet Jonathan Jackson writes in his endorsement, "When Breath Was Drink for Ghosts arrives at a time when the world is in desperate need of poetry’s healing balm."
More than a collection of poems, this book is an bold invitation—to pause, to reflect, to feel. Each piece asks the reader to step into a space of quiet contemplation, to listen to the echoes of their own thoughts and longing, perhaps to discover something of themselves in Strayer’s words. Whether exploring the depths of sorrow or celebrating the brilliance of fleeting joy, When Breath Was Drink for Ghosts lingers long after the final page is turned. It is not just a book—it is an experience, a mirror, a testament to the beauty and burden of being alive.
Peter Strayer and The Poetic Level are proud to highlight and recommend Niokoba, the talented artist behind the cover art and graphic design layout of 'When Breath Was Drink for Ghosts'.
For more information please visit: niokoba.com
