TRUCK HAS DELIVERED ITS MARCH LOAD!

And so I end my guest-curatorship of The List or Catalog Poem Series over at TRUCK.  I end with me.

Hm. "I end with me."  That's, like, almost as catchy as "I is the Other" but I digress...

I said, "I end with me" because I chose to feature as the last poem a poem written by Sandy McIntosh when he was making fun of how prolific I am and specifically with thick books like, as he called them, the BRICK and SON-OF-A-BRICK.  Funny guy, my publisher.

Anyway, it's been a joy to do this project.  And I thank the poet-participants again and, for your convenience and re-reading pleasure, post their names below -- you can check out their List Poems by going HERE:

1 – Pamela Hart 

2 – Amanda Ngoho Reavey 

3 – Barry Schwabsky  

4 – Stephanie Strickland 

5 – Sandy McIntosh

6 – John Bloomberg-Rissman

7 – Anne Gorrick

8 – Sheila Murphy 

8 – Rebecca Loudon

9 – Patrick James Dunagan

9 – Jean Vengua 

10 – Anny Ballardini 

11 – Patti Greenberg 

12 – Neil Leadbeater 
12 – Lanny Quarles

13 – Laura Roghaar 

14 – Donna Fleischer

15 – Marton Koppany 

16 – Minal Hajratwala 

17 – Michael Sikkema 

18 – lars palm 

19 – Tom Beckett 

20 – Mark Young 

21 – Cynthia Schwartzberg Edlow 

22 – Alex Gildzen 

23 – Melissa Eleftherion

24 – J.G. Dimaranan 

25 – G. Mae Aquino 
26 – Erin Virgil
27 – J Likha Yatco

28 – Julia Fleeman 

29 – Shloka Shankar 

29 – Jim McCrary

30 – Halvard Johnson 

31 – Eileen Tabios & a Doppelganger (Sandy McIntosh)

DO PENCIL ME IN FOR NEW YORK!

I'm flying to New York City in May for literally a one day in-and-out.  Why?  For launching my books with the rest of Marsh Hawk Press' recently-published authors.  May 15, 7 pm at Poets House.  More info HERE.

You are invited!!!

BOOKS THAT CAME HOME

I write THIS BLOG for my son and I just posted on these books:

ON THE ONE HAND, PROLIFIC; ON THE OTHER HAND, A SLACKER!

Huh.  Last year, I released three poetry collections and an edited anthology.  So far in 2015, I've released two books, have another forthcoming, have two manuscripts under consideration, and three other manuscripts I'm just sitting on as I don't have time for them except to sit on them.  But apparently, I can still be considered a slacker.  Well, at least when I start getting compared to Joyce Carol Oates!  It's all good, of course.  If anything, coverage like that by my local paper reminds me not to keep sitting on my butt ...

The St. Helena Star is three books behind on its coverage of me....but no complaints: I'm just happy to have coverage!

"TREMBLING HAND EQUILIBRIUM"

And the poetry read of the day is Barry Schwabsky’s palpably-charged TREMBLING HAND EQUILIBRIUM!  But here's the rest of my latest Relished W(h)ines update of recently imbibed books and wines.  As ever, please note that in the Publications section, if you see an asterisk before the title, that means a review copy is available for Galatea Resurrects!  More info on that HERE. 

PUBLICATIONS

TRAUMA MOUTH, poems by Jessica Smith (powerful. moving.  freshens its zeitgeist.  LinkedIn Poetry Recommendations (LPR) #165) 

KATE STREET, poems by rob mclennan (fresh. LPR #166)

*  COSTUME EN FACE: A PRIMER OF DARKNESS FOR YOUNG BOYS AND GIRLS, poetry/dance/performance by Tatsumi Hijikata viz notebook by Moe Yamamoto, translated by Sawako Nakayasu (just fabulous. LPR #167)

 

TREMBLING HAND EQUILIBRIUM, poems by Barry Schwabsky (lovingly smart; smartly loving. LPR #168)

AS THEY FALL, poem by Ivy Johnson (radiant. Future LPR #169)

*  THINK TANK, poems by Julie Carr (lovely. Redolent with plenty)

TRAPEZE, poems by Halvard Johnson (wonderful.  Coming out with great work recently)

*  DRIVING TO THE BEES, poems by Maggie Schwed (admirably deft)

LETTER FROM STRAWBERRY ISLAND, poems by Edric Mesmer (enchanting)

PREGRETS, poems by Anselm Berrigan

UNCONTAINABLE NOISE, poems by Steve Davenport

*  FANTASY, poems by Ben Fama

*  WOLFMAN LIBRARIAN, poems by Filip Marinovich

*  THE GREEN RAY, poems by Corina Copp

*  ALIEN ABDUCTION, poems by Lewis Warsh

*  THIS VISIT, poems by Susan Lewis

*  MUTANT NEURON CODEX SWARM, poems by Juliet Cook and Robert Cole

*  GHOST BOX, poems by Emerson Whitney

*  TERROR MATRIX, poems by Zoe Tuck

MAGNETIC REFRAIN, poems by Nicky Sa-eun Schildkraut

TWO BOOKS ON THE GAS: ABOVE THE SHALE / ACHIEVED BY KISSING, poems by Jared Schickling

*  MAKING MAXINE’S BABY, poems by Caroline Hagood

*  THIEVES IN THE FAMILY, poems by Maria Lisella

SPINE STILL HOLDING, poems by Bonnie Long

RESURRECTION, poems by Nicole Cooley

REMAINS TO BE SEEN, poems by Halvard Johnson

NEW COLLECTED POEMS by Eavan Boland

LIBRETTOS FOR THE BLACK MADONNA, poems by Neal Leadbeater

*  THE LOVELIEST VEIN OF OUR LIVES: A JOURNEY THROUGH BRAZIL, poems by Neal Leadbeater

THE FRAGILITY OF MOTHS, poems by Neal Leadbeater

THE WORCESTER FRAGMENTS, poems by Neal Leadbeater

AMAZING WORLD (THE BARDS #25), leaflet of poems by Neal Leadbeater

*  NEIGHBORS, poems by Jay Nebel

*  INDUSTRY OF BRIEF DISTRACTION, poems by Laurie Saurborn Young

SPINE STILL HOLDING, poems by Bonnie Long

THE ASIAN AMERICAN LITERARY REVIEW, literary journal coedited by Lawrence-Minh Bui Davis and Gerald Maa

THE WOMEN IN VISUAL POETRY: THE BECHDEL TEST / Essay Press, Curated by Jessica Smith 

ECCOLINGUISTICS, Jan. 2015, poetry zine

MARSH HAWK REVIEW, Spring 2015, editor Thomas Fink

E-RATIO #20, Feb. 2015, poetry journal, editor Gregory Vincent St. Thomasino

IN AMERICA’S SHOES, memoir by Andrei Codrescu

SLEEPING WITH CATS, memoir with poems by Madge Piercy

A VERY EASY DEATH, memoir by Simone De Beauvoir

THE AMERICAN WAY OF POVERTY: HOW THE OTHER HALF STILL LIVES, social science by Sasha  Abramsky

I AM PILGRIM novel by Terry Hayes

TYPHOON, novel by Robin White

WINES

2010 Psi Ribera del Duero

2010 Catena cabernet Mendoza (Argentina)

Alvear Pedro Ximenez de auada Montilla Mobiles

Champagne Launois Brut

2012 Peter Michael “Belle Cote” chardonnay

1981 Lopez de Heredia

Krug Grand Cuvee

1999 Billecart-Salmon Brut champagne

2010 Mad Hatter (Dancing Hares)

2011 Dancing Hares

2013 Dancing Hares barrel sample

2014 Dancing Hares Cabernet barrel sample (2 months, 25 Brix)

2013 Togni barrel sample cabernet blend

2011 Togni

2007 Ca Togni

2005 Altamura Sangiovese

2006 Altamura cabernet

2006 Altamura sauvignon blanc

2007 Peter Michael “La Carriere” chardonnay

2007 Dancing Hares

2005 Joh. Jos. Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese

2009 Puerto Salinas Alicante

2010 Encanto Pinot Noir Carneros NV

2012 J-P Honrama cabernet NV

2010 Ch. St. Jean merlot Sonoma County

2011 Penfolds shiraz cabernet Koonunga Hill

2014 Matua sauvignon blanc Marlborough (New Zealand)

2011 Tres Sabores

2012 Beringer cabernet Knights Valley

2010 Fattoria Del Cerro Vino Nobile Di Montepulciano

I FORGOT LIGHT BURNS

As I've said before, my MDR Poetry Generator can create a de facto infinite number of poems (a number with 3,110 digits).  So far, I've written 130 poems.  And a recent set just created my first released poetry collection for 2015: 

I FORGOT LIGHT BURNS.

Thanks to publisher William Allegrezza of Moria who says about it: "I Forgot Light Burns is an excellent book, so head over to read it!"

This is the second published poetry collection concocted through the Generator, the first being 44 RESURRECTIONS.

Not to worry, I won't keep cranking up the Generator.  As also a conceptual project, it's proven itself: poems published in individual journals, two released books and three other manuscripts (at least one of which has obtained a new book publisher).

Light burns and I've got toilet paper on my book cover -- doesn't that make you want to check it out?!

A MOMENT

It's always a moment when one's first box of author copies arrive.  Today, two boxes of AGAINST MISANTHROPY: A Life in Poetry...

It's a moment.

THE MITZVAH PURCHASE

Kindness is rarely an impetus to my poetry book purchases.  But, occasionally, it is.  Because we're all human...

LINES OF SIGHT: VISUAL ART IN ASIAN AMERICAN POETRY

My thanks to Michael Leong and Ken Chen/Asian American Writers Workshop for featuring me and 8 other "ekphrastic poets" for "Lines of Sight: Visual Art in Asian American Poetry."    The company is outstanding. As Ken posted in FB, "Images by Kiki Smith, Diane Arbus, Bruce Nauman and others, are paired with poems by John Yau, Mei-Mei Berssenbrugge, Jennifer Hayashida, Eileen Tabios, Shin Yu Pai, Debbie Kuan, Christine Wong Yap, Walter K. Lew, and O Chung." Michael wrote a fabulous introduction -- here's an excerpt (which references a review-essay on ekphrasis I had written for Jacket):

When engaging with the tradition of ekphrastic poetry, these poets frequently strive to go beyond, to quote Leo Spitzer’s classic definition, “the reproduction, through the medium of words, of sensuously perceptible objets d’art.” A case in point would be Eileen Tabios’ “Athena’s Diptych,” which, rather than reproducing a specific artwork, inventively “reproduces” the painterly technique of scumbling in a linguistic medium. In a 2003 review-essay called “Redeeming my Faith in Ekphrasis,” Tabios says, “I came to prefer [. . .] writing poems that, while inspired by and perhaps even seeking to mirror a visual image, actually came to embody something different.” Likewise, in his introduction to Viva la Difference: Poetry Inspired by the Painting of Peter Saul John Yau outlines the project’s allegiance to non-normative and anti-mainstream ekphrasis: “Our intention was different [. . .] Our intention was not to be impressionist or to tell a story. Those are well-known solutions, and, frankly we wanted something else.” 

*****

For this folio, Michael chose poems (in the chained hay(na)ku form) from a nine-year-old book, DREDGING FOR ATLANTIS. How heartening!  And wonderful to see the poem living its life beyond the poet's intention...  Thank you, Michael.

"HEIR APPARENT" AND...

Delighted to share that three favorite poems from my manuscript AMNESIA: Somebody's Memoir are in the latest issue of one of the sharpest lit journals out there, THE VOLTA, which is to say, thanks to editor Joshua Marie Wilkinson for dubbing me "Heir Apparent."  Click on the poem titles below (which I cite to blog-file) to get to them:

"I Forgot That Summer in Rome" 
"I Forgot My Skin Was Ruin" 
and an excerpt from "I Forgot the Song Inside the Stone"

To write those poems, Achilles whispered back after I whispered tips to him as he played draughts with Ajax:

*****

Speaking of newly-published poems, I am also delighted to share that a poem from another manuscript, The Connoisseur of Alleys, is part of the just-released Marsh Hawk Review.  Poem is titled "ENHEDUANNA IN THE 21ST CENTURY." And I'm also in great company.

Thanks to poetry and poet-editors and poetry-readers!

LISTING INTO MARCH!

MARCH means a daily posting of list or catalog poems over at TRUCK.  Given my interest in the form, I decided to curate a theme issue on it -- here's my official announcement below -- but keep checking HERE for poets who listed into poems!


TRUCK ANNOUNCEMENT:

Dear Readers,

Thanks to Halvard Johnson for the opportunity to curate a group of poems concerned with the form of list or catalog poem. This is a form that’s interested me since I began writing poems. In more recent years, the list poem has intrigued because of my other interest in subverting the form of auto/biography; I’ve found that the list not only can be an autobiographical fragment of one’s life (e.g. ye olde shopping list) but also a form that can enhance truth-telling by presenting a scaffolding against the turmoil of emotions that arises when one looks at one’s life.

My interest in this form will manifest itself in my forthcoming book, INVENT(ST)ORY: Selected Catalog Poems &New. I decided to curate a TRUCK issue on the list poem to see how else other poets conceive of the form. As you will see through these varied offerings, there’s more going on in the list poem than just … listing.  My thanks to the poet-participants.

I list below the poet-participants. I plan to post 1-2 poets daily. For convenience, their names below will be linked to their offerings as we proceed through the month.

Enjoy!

EileenTabios

ORDER:

(Nos. are Days of Month):

1 – Introduction & Index

1 – Pamela Hart 

2 – Amanda Ngoho Reavey 

3 – Barry Schwabsky  

4 – Stephanie Strickland 

5 – Sandy McIntosh

6 – John Bloomberg-Rissman

7 – Anne Gorrick

8 – Sheila Murphy 

8 – Rebecca Loudon

9 – Patrick James Dunagan

9 – Jean Vengua 

10 – Anny Ballardini 

11 – Patti Greenberg 

12 – Neil Leadbeater 

13 – Laura Roghaar 

14 – Donna Fleischer

15 – Marton Koppany 

16 – Minal Hajratwala 

17 – Michael Sikkema 

18 – lars palm 

19 – Tom Beckett 

20 – Mark Young 

21 – Cynthia Schwartzberg Edlow 

22 – Alex Gildzen 

23 – Melissa Eleftherion

24 – J.G. Dimaranan 

25 – G. Mae Aquino 
26 – Erin Virgil
27 – J Likha Yatco

28 – Julia Fleeman 

29 – Shloka Shankar 

29 – Jim McCrary

30 – Halvard Johnson 

31 – Eileen Tabios & a Doppelganger (Sandy McIntosh)

(cover to a List Poem chap by TRUCK contributor Alex Gildzen)

*****

P.S.  Here's one of the contributors Jim McCrary just coz I'll post his mug anywhere, this one as a young un':