Poetry. Dave Oliphant's BACKTRACKING explores the influences and inspirations that shaped the work of this prolific American poet. The impact of Spanish culture on the poet is featured at the beginning of the collection, while his wife serves as the inspiration for an ongoing series of poems that celebrates the passion and mystery of their 37-year love affair. Oliphant also pays tribute to his forbearers and remembers literary and musical figures important to his life and those of his kinsmen. An eclectic gathering of poems on Texas landscapes and people, a Chinese film, the Connecticut composer Charles Ives, a Van Gogh painting and an elegy of Princess Diana are also included in this diverse and powerful collection of contemporary American poetry.