Johanna Shapiro, Ph.D.
Cortney Davis, the author of I Hear Their Voices Singing, is a nurse, and Daniel Becker, the author of 2nd Chance, is a physician. The commonalities and distinctions of their poetry are likely rooted in these professional realities. Given the similarity of their professional backgrounds, many of the themes the poets address at the deepest levels are comparable. Both are committed to healing—their patients, and themselves. Both are attuned to the omnipresence of suffering and death. Ultimately, both poets adopt a somewhat similar position from which to contemplate their surroundings. Their stance is compassionate yet detached. They look at the world with complete honesty and clarity and do not turn away from what they see.