A completely new way of thinking about traditional archery takes shape in the pages of this book. The emphasis throughout is on the basic principles that govern the design, performance, and use of all forms of traditional bows and arrows. Here are discussed both the practical as well as the technical considerations behind the choices faced by every archer in selecting and using the tools of the sport. The design of the bow-and the arrow-are analyzed in terms of the underlying principles that determine their performance and use. The concept of an ideal bow and an ideal arrow are introduced as useful ways of thinking about the limitations of real bows and arrows. The important parameters of the bow are identified and a straightforward way of measuring them is described. The effect of draw weight on performance is examined with a view to injecting some realism into the perennial question of how much draw weight is enough. A separate chapter is devoted to the problem of distance shooting and another to clearing up the confusion surrounding the topic of arrow penetration. The effects of variations in arrow straightness, spine, and weight are analyzed to answer the question of when better arrows finally become good enough. The techniques of shooting and an in-depth discussion of the causes, and cures, of target panic are presented. And finally a separate chapter is devoted to a primer on the analytical design of bow limbs. This is a book for all serious archers-and bowyers alike-whether their interest is bow hunting, field and target archery, or bow design, and whether they are newcomers to the sport or experienced archers. The chapters on shooting are among the best ever written and alone make the book invaluable. There is something here to enhance the understanding and practice of archery for all who love and shoot traditional bows and arrows. THOMAS GRISSOM has been a lifelong archer. A writer and a physicist, he is the author of several works of fiction and non-fiction, including four collections of poems also published by Sunstone Press.

In this second edition of his second collection of poems, the author continues to explore those "Other Truths" that inevitably shape our lives in the many ways expressed in his first collection. These are poems fashioned from the crosscurrents of events that make up the life of each of us. There are glimpses of the past interwoven in the present, just as what happens next is the result of all that has gone before. Taken all together there is an underlying theme in these poems: the search for truth and meaning in the uncertainty of our time These are honest renderings of private thoughts and inner truths crafted in a modern idiom and written in free verse lines that mirror the patterns and natural rhythms of spoken language, creating a poetry that is lucid and eminently readable. THOMAS GRISSOM is also the author of three other collections of poems: "Other Truths," "Journal Entries," and "Neither Here Nor There," all from Sunstone Press. He lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico and is Emeritus Member of the Faculty at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. In addition to poetry Grissom is the author of several works of fiction as well as non-fiction.

In this new edition of the author's first collection of poems, he writes about those simple truths and everyday experiences that inevitably shape our lives. With uncompromising honesty, these poems speak with a vibrant, dynamic voice. In poetry simple and uncluttered, with a flowing rhythmic style, they state their message lucidly and pointedly, creating an affinity between the poet and the man on the street. These are poems from the heart, written openly and honestly with always the abiding conviction that they should "tell no lies." Poems that never seek to deny the reality of those other, darker truths of our existence, movingly expressed by one who sees clearly in his own life and experience the central elements of the human condition. THOMAS GRISSOM is also the author of three other collections of poems: "One Spring More," "Journal Entries," and "Neither Here Nor There," all from Sunstone Press. He lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico and is Emeritus Member of the Faculty at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. In addition to poetry Grissom is the author of several works of fiction as well as non-fiction.

Poetry is to be found in everything around us, in the simple everyday events of our lives, in the small things we think and feel and do, in our most private thoughts and innermost concerns. All we have to do is pause and take the time to look and listen and heed. The poems in this book are gleaned from a kind of poetic journal kept by the author over a period of time to record whatever he was thinking and whatever was of immediate importance. Taken all together they trace an intellectual as well as an actual journey through the inner thoughts and outward events of a lifetime. They are crafted in a modern idiom out of plain, unadorned words in free verse lines that mirror the patterns and natural rhythms of spoken language, creating a connection between the poet and the man on the street. These are private poems, made no less private by sharing them, conceived and written with no real thought of anyone ever reading them. They were impelled nevertheless by that most basic of all human impulses, the need to communicate with others. And in that spirit they are presented here. Thomas Grissom is also the author of three other collections of poems: Other Truths, One Spring More, and Neither Here Nor There, all from Sunstone Press. He lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico and is Emeritus Member of the Faculty at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. In addition to poetry Grissom is the author of several works of fiction as well as non-fiction.