Many of the poems and prose in These Extremes focus on the author's family and relationships, ranging from a memorialization of his oldest sister, who died young; to prose memory pieces recalling his childhood and adolescence; to loving but unsentimental portraits of his father, mother, and other relatives. "Back Stories," the center of the book, effortlessly weaves poems around familiar characters from history, literature, movies, and popular culture-ranging from Thomas Jefferson and Shakespeare's Falstaff to Sam, the piano player from "Casablanca." These Extremes will surprise and delight lovers of poetry and fans of Bausch's stories and novels.