In Bumper Cars, Athol Williams continues his project, started in his book Talking to a Tree, of reflecting upon the circumstance that leads to human conflict. He appeals to both reason and intuition to paint images of a new consciousness and new institutions that offer hope of peaceful human existence. The collection speaks to the global human condition with a thread of South African and Israel-Palestine themes, the latter reflecting his participation in the international art project here, without hosted at Harvard University. Through all his social, political and philosophical reflection, Williams draws the conclusion, as poets have for centuries, that love is humanity’s greatest need and the best response to contemporary society’s challenges.