by form. The book is written as if it is a collection of biblical psalms; however the subject matter and literary style could not be less biblical. Mierau uses techniques such as irony and juxtaposition to intensify the messages and experience of his writing. The juxtaposition is one of form and style against content. Mierau's poems are well crafted and lyrical and unfailingly mirror the ancient biblical form of the psalm, yet they are dealing with the harsh realities of a modern world and are unrelentingly accurate in describing the human experience. Works Poetry Ending With Music (2002) Ending With Music, Maurice Mierau's first book, was published by Brick Books in 2002. The book is a collection of poems that deal with themes of violence, suicide, martyrdom, music, and pop culture. These themes are explored through the lens of Anabaptist and Mennonite history, as framed by the book Martyr's Mirror. In other poems he looks at the plight of Mennonite farmers in Saskatchewan during the 1930s and his own family's experience of fleeing from the Ukraine near the end of World War 2. Other poems in the book examine historical figures like Louis Armstrong and Lenny Breau, highlighting the immortalizing effect of artistic expression. The style is influenced by some writers, particularly Patrick Friesen and Robert Kroetsch. In Ending With Music the poetic style tends to be unadorned, while there is some use of sonnets and rhyming schemes. Fear Not (2008) Fear Not, published by Turnstone Press in 2008, is a collection of poems that parody the self-help topics in the Gideon Bible. The poems intermingle biblical passages with contemporary self-help and advertising language. Poems are based upon the directory at the end of the Gideon Bible that suggests readings based on the readers state of mind, such as "Tempted to Lie". Although based on the Gideon Bible the subject matter of the poems often diverge to reference pop culture, the holocaust and his family. Formally, this book represents a significant stylistic departure from his first book,Ending with Music. The poems are set up in two columns, like the King James Bible but use traditional formal shapes of English poetry (sonnet, sestina, nonce form). Non-fiction Memoir of a Living Disease (2005) Memoir of a Living Disease, published by Great Plains Publication in 2005, is a non-fiction history of the treatment and current impact of tuberculosis in the world, focusing on