For the savvy connoisseur of Consciousness, John Urban's book Gnomena is to be kept at the bedside table, allowing each phrase to transport the reader into realms of exquisite perfection in thought and form. Urban honors poetry as "the art of the word" and "a higher form of play." And of course, the scaffolding of poetry is thought. Urban's ultimate conclusion: "True thought is love / In the mode of intellect." Simple. Pure. Elegant. Transcendent. Those descriptors remain with the reader after the journey is complete.