August - 2020

Day 31 The Final Day: "Stained Glass Poems" by Rosanna Warren

My copy is signed. Thank you Harold. This collections is the 1993 Lamont Poetry Selection of the Academy of American Poets. As we enter Fall "It is / September. Pansy / freaked with jet be / damned: it takes this radiant bitterness to stand, / to take the throb of sky" (3). I would like to call this poetry tender. And yes, it is that, but it is also soul vibrating. Seeing a frozen child in National Geographic and bringing life from tragedy with the viewpoint of love is refres

A Tribute: A we near the end of the Sealey Challenge

I did not know the name of my benefactor of 800-900+ books. I know that they are inscribed to Harold M... (he wanted to be anonymous, so I'll respect his wishes). But he will never know what treasure he has given me and what added purpose. To think, that my books (those I own) and those I write--will be passed on to some new/upcoming poet is amazing. A legacy of words and books on kindle...but so will his. His books will be added to mine. I really want (have ALWAYS wanted) to

Day 30: "James Wright: The Collected Poems" James Wright

Because this is a collection, James Wright's path is portrayed closely chronologically and shows growth and change. Subject matter changes, as does that narrator. The narrator seems more revealed if not necessarily older. The poems become more refined and feel distilled. They are more crafted, but lack some of the energy of the early work. They are for the most part narrative. Of course, they contain legions of lyricism and in places form. None of these are ever without the o

Day 29: "The Tradition" by Jericho Brown-Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, 2020

I admit that I have read only about 15 of the poems in the collection and skimmed some of the rest. Even in skimming there is marvelousness. The Tradition focuses on race--how black and brown men AND women are por portrayed, forced to live, have such pressure to prove they are better, or at least average, and there is so much want for love in these poems. The mother(s) want love even as they beat their children. They want to add color to their yards--seemingly simple "normal"

Day 29--but wait not yet! I'm watching Highlander

I haven't watched Highlander the Original Movie in a very, very long time. Of course, the Queen pieces, and a few bits, but damn! Still love me some swords. And Queen.

Day 28: "The New Testament" by Jericho Brown

To my great shame, I was unaware of Jericho Brown until after an online interview and reading with Grace Cavaliere aired. I was/am absolutely captivated by voice. Not as in the aural, but as in how the narrator uses word play and distinct voice. Allusions and direct references to the Bible, race, gender, LGBTQA+ , are all captured and contained within form and free verse. I will not be able to do justice, but instead will end with a quote that reflects the narrator (maybe the

Day 27: "The Poet's Cookbook: Recipes from Tuscany" Grace Cavaliere and Sabine Pascare

The Poet's Cookbook is fun and not like any book I've ever seen. It is part anthology part cookbook. There are translations, poetry in shapes and forms, really beautiful images of everything from baking bread to the warmth of lovers. There are recipes! (I have severe dental problems so alas I cannot eat anything in the book--but I can dream ; ) There is elegance in this book too. I enjoyed it. I wish I knew Italian or had time to learn enough to attempt translation. https://w

Day 26: "for an okay free woman" by Lester Paldy

I read the first five-ten poems and thought that the book would only be about nature's beauty. The poems were very specific, rich in details...but I wanted the speaker's wonder to go deeper inward into story. And it did. As the poems progressed the "free woman" enters--the speaker's desire, love, and feelings of her absence. The "sweetness" is not sickly. It feels real, not creepy. Which--I think is a very hard thing to accomplish. There is tenderness here. Other poems about

Day 25: "the volcano sequence" by Alicia Suskin Ostrinker

If you like poem cycle or sequences this the collection for you. Artful, rebellious, lyrical--all describe. The Torah and the G_d is addressed, but with female energy. The psalms are played and reimagined. The earth mother powerful. The passage (so far) that has struck me is "I am like the stones people place on graves to make them a little heavier" (82). I feel that idea/metaphor more than I understand it. I am attracted to its power. Every poem require contemplation. This i

Day 24: "The Northway" by Lisa Bellamy

Again, a bit of a cheat--but a good one. Lisa was, sometimes is, my instructor at The Writers Studio. Of all of my courses, there (I went all the way through from Level 1 to years of Advanced Poetry and specialty classes)--Lisa engaged me the the most. I never was really introduced to her poetry. Perhaps, I didn't know to look? The Northway is her magnificent collection. There are so many powerful poems to discuss. The cheat of the matter is that I randomly pick up the collec

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