Human, Tree

poems by Lisa Romano Licht

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In Human, Tree, Lisa Romano Licht artfully employs the motif of trees to observe both joyful and difficult human moments with lyrical finesse. Poems on family bonds, relationships, and self-realization through nature offer the message that all of us—tree, firefly, dog, human—share a connection with the earth and each other. Sections titled “Seedling,” “Sapling,” “Mature” and “Ancient” parallel life experiences with those in nature. While loss, aging, and other universal hardships share space with our more grateful moments, the inherent resilience and hope of living things ask to be celebrated in this collection that James Crews calls “precise, fearless, and beautiful.”

POETRY / General

ISBN: 978-1-971191-38-6 (print; softcover; perfect bound)

LCCN: 2026952505

66 pages

Author Biography

Lisa Romano Licht’s poetry and other work have appeared in ONE ART, San Pedro River Review, Steam Ticket, The Westchester Review, Mom Egg Review, The Hyacinth Review, and elsewhere, and were selected for the anthologies The Year’s Best Dog Stories and Nothing Divine Dies. Her poem, “For a Would-Be Actress” won first prize in Blue Mountain Arts’ National Competition, and “Liberated” placed first in Greenburgh, New York’s statewide contest judged by Patricia Spears Jones. Romano Licht holds a Masters in Writing from Manhattanville University, and led a professional career in communications/fundraising with nonprofits and schools. A lifelong New Yorker, she spent her childhood in the North Bronx, young adulthood in Westchester, and currently lives in Rockland County with her husband. She revels in family, nature, travel, and the arts. Follow her on X: @LRLwrites.

Endorsements

“The poems in Lisa Romano Licht’s transcendent collection, Human, Tree, know how to take their time as they unfold, opening arms as wide as a maple to utter each ‘unearthed thank you’ for this world just as it is. Wisdom shines through the poet’s lines over and over as she reckons with youth, grief, beauty, and her own role as a mother. In ‘DNA,’ she urges her daughter—and by extension, all of us: ‘Don’t coddle words in hollow hands, / fireflies dimmed. / Set them free. / Be braver than I’ve been.’ The bravery of this book will send ripples outward into your daily life, long after you have finished reading it.”
—James Crews, author of The Sacred Everyday

“Human, Tree, Lisa Romano Licht’s debut collection, intricately links the natural world—marked by a ‘Mardi Gras parade of trees’—to pivotal moments along the emotional passage from childhood to parenthood and beyond. Through poems of arresting imagery and authentic, compassionate voice, Romano Licht shepherds us to a place of comfort where we are no longer fearful of the journey nor ‘naive about how deep to dig.’” 
—Linda Simone, author of The River Will Save Us

“Human, Tree is a surprising foray into the similarities of human development and experience juxtaposed with the life cycle of trees.  This collection segues from the poet’s inner world to the world and circumstances around her. People, places, animals, trees ,and emotions all hold equal space on her pages. I was unexpectedly moved by her birds-eye, detached emotionality. She designs scenes that pull the reader onto the page, then holds them with well-chosen words that arouse and arrest. Human, Tree is the work of an experienced poet who lovingly observes life and translates it vividly for others.”
—Sarah Bracey White, author of Primary Lessons, A Memoir

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