I admire Robert VANDERMOLEN who I have been reading for years and translating into Portuguese from time to time.

Concise and moderate, most of his characters, situations and stories are born from fogs, heavy rains, snowfalls, and other ambiguous luminosities, to then project their own light and insinuate themselves into the reader's understanding.

At the very heart of his texts there is always a subtle, furtive and nostalgic emotion that surprises and delights us.

For instance:

"IN BEBRUARY

I used to come home
From the foundry at night
Drink a beer
And fall asleep on the couch

Kathy thought I was sexy
Covered with grime

I lost count
Of my mornings

---The trick, he insisted,
Is to be clever
Without seeming clever

I thought that made sense

But I would have to learn
To relax when I answered the phone

---My father said,
Much of what we know of history
Has to do with warfare

Can't argue with that.
Still,
When you look
At stars from the park at night
You prefer they stay put

That is, no matter where you travel
You want things to stay
Familiar behind you"

by Armando TABORDA, 2025

(short book review about "THE UNCOLLECTED", by Robert VANDERMOLEN, Gob Pile Press, SE Ohio, 2024)