Rider unhorsed -- On leaving home -- Guide -- The largest of the circus animals -- Oakland work crew -- Worry bone -- Notes on thirty years in the life of a ventriloquist -- The end of reading -- Learning to wait -- American beech -- Inspiration -- Ventriloquist on an off-day -- Panic grass and feverfew -- Phaeton -- Ventriloquist on the moor -- Still life, Young Woman at the Water's Edge -- Park City Grille -- A brief history of the decline -- The origin of pigeons -- One of the dummies at night -- Explanation beginning with a river -- Maker -- Wildflowers of North America -- Self-portrait as a word ending in e -- Notes on colic -- How to make fatherhood lyrical -- Music in my head -- Death of a ventriloquist -- Proof #4 -- Visiting Chicago -- Four planes of experience -- Rattling funicular -- Caravaggio's Peter -- The prayer of glass -- Disabused sonnet -- The perhaps world -- Pull -- The worst first line -- More matter, less art -- The nots
""Acknowledgments""; ""1""; ""Rider Unhorsed""; ""On Leaving Home""; ""Guide""; ""The Largest of the Circus Animals""; ""Oakland Work Crew""; ""Worry Bone""; ""Notes on Thirty Years in the Life of a Ventriloquist""; ""The End of Reading""; ""Learning to Wait""; ""Inspiration""; ""American Beech""; ""Ventriloquist on an Off-Day""; ""2""; ""Panic Grass and Feverfew""; ""Phaëton""; ""Ventriloquist on the Moor""; ""Still Life, Young Woman at the Water�s Edge""; ""Park City Grille""; ""A Brief History of the Decline""; ""The Origin of Pigeons""; ""One of the Dummies at Night""; ""3""
""Explanation Beginning with a River""""Maker""; ""Wildflowers of North America""; ""Self-Portrait as a Word Ending in E""; ""Notes on Colic""; ""How to Make Fatherhood Lyrical""; ""Music in My Head""; ""Death of a Ventriloquist""; ""4""; ""Proof #4""; ""Visiting Chicago""; ""Four Planes of Experience""; ""Rattling Funicular""; ""Caravaggio�s Peter""; ""The Prayer of Glass""; ""Disabused Sonnet""; ""The Perhaps World""; ""Pull""; ""The Worst First Line""; ""More Matter, Less Art""; ""The Nots""; ""Notes""