"BARK'S FORTHCOMING FACT"

Well, John Ashbery's lines are quite fluid, aren't they. A couple of his lines generated a poem, "Bark's Forthcoming Fact," that is contextualized within the theme described in the zine's title, #100 Days of Resistance. Curated by Jan Christian Bernabe and put out by the ever-thoughtful Center for Art and Thought, this e-zine presents photography, collage, found objects/sculpture and poetry. I'm pleased to be in it ... and you can peruse it for FREE through this link:

http://centerforartandthought.org/sites/new.centerforartandthought.com/files/CAT_100DaysOfResistance_FINAL.pdf

Also featured are artists Miko Aguilar, Dennis Andrew S. Aguinaldo, Suvan Greer, Anne Mavor, January Turla, and Melissa Villa-Real Basmayor.  Enjoy!

"AS LONG AS SHE WRITES, I WILL REVIEW"

One of the benefits of staying the course for years is having readers who stay with you. I'm grateful for this review from Joey Madia whose read of my books now incorporate what he'd previously gleaned from my older works. Thank you, Joey, for this in your review of MANHATTAN: An Archaeology which is forthcoming this Fall. Here's an excerpt--such a loving excerpt!--of the beginning and end of his New Mystics Reviews write-up entitled "Forever the Innovator":

"As long as she writes, I will review. Because each experience generates new inspirations and new commentary on the state of our arts. Given the use of our lists by Big Data, this particular creative act of Tabios’s might be nothing less than Revolutionary."

I'm also grateful to Paloma Press and Aileen Cassinetto for having extended the "Pre-Release Offer" to a Year 2017 Special whereby the 50% discount off of the retail price will hold true for book buyers for the remainder of the year.  More info HERE. (Let's support small presses! MANHATTAN is only the second release for this brand-new poetry press!)

POETRY FOUNDATION LETS YOU HEAR MOI!

You can hear me read and discuss my poem, "Mom Betty Addresses the Nature of Proportion" -- my "first 100% autobiographical poem." Thanks to POETRY FOUNDATION's "PoetryNow" series for making it happen, specifically Michael Slosek and producer Katie Slosin. I'm the Aug. 28, 2017 entry ... but if you click on link you'll see many other fabulous poets reading and discussing individual poems!

Katie also did a wonderful job melding the discussion with cello music, specifically "Crying Cello." So apt and respectful... which I needed because this poem is also about Mom.

LOVE... IS AVAILABLE IN FRANCE!

LOVE IN A TIME OF BELLIGERENCE: My book in France is now available for ordering from the Editions du Cygne’s website (it's in English as it's published through English imprint of French publisher).

Once, I was asked why I would be interested in being published in France. I replied, “It's part of my 'Transnational poetics' to be published in different places. This relates to my position as an immigrant to the U.S., that my birth land (Philippines) is not the same country I remember from my childhood, among other factors … such that identity is an unstable (not fixed) position. What heals and keeps it all whole is (from indigenous Filipino perspective) the idea of “Kapwa” which relates to everything/one being related: One is All; All is One. This then relates (in part) to an interest in being published around the world.” It’s a simplistic summary, but to those who pay attention to my work, possibly not a surprising answer.

I hope this book interests you in ordering it. For those in Europe, you can get it for 13 Euros (though that’s not mentioned on the site; just query publisher).

If you’re interested in reviewing, just let me know.

LOVE IN A TIME OF BELLIGERENCE

is the title of my forthcoming French book.  My French book -- I'll revel in that phrase for a while as this is my first book publication in France.  And I can't think of a better way to share its news than through this engagement I just wrote for the August issue of Galatea Resurrects (see below for contents).  My essay about the book cover and cover artist Marc Gaba is HERE -- speaking of book cover, here it is:

Isn't my new baby beautiful? I expect to receive my copies in September/October time frame -- obviously I'll let you know when it lands in the U.S.!

**

Meanwhile, please enjoy the August issue of Galatea Resurrects. You can go HERE for the issue, but here are the Contents below for convenience. As ever, I thank the volunteer-reviewers and poets:

AUGUST
Selected Poems & Series by Thomas Fink
Engaged by Margaret H. Johnson (8/12)

FEATURED POET: Jean Vengua
(8/11)

Oxygen by Julia Fiedorczuk, Translated by Bill Johnston
Engaged by Eileen Tabios (8/10)

“Romeo and Romeo” by Ahmet Güntan
Engaged by Peter Valente (8/9)

"A Simple Word" by Marc Gaba
Engaged by Eileen Tabios (8/8)

Cat Poems: Wompus Tales & a Play of Despair by Christopher Shipman
Reviewed by Ariel Gratch (8/7)

Taropoetics by Anna McKerrow
Reviewed by Nikki Dudley (8/6)

A Poetry of Elephants, anthology compiled by Rebecca Gethin
Engaged by Eileen Tabios (8/5)

November Odds: Anger Fear and Horror After November 8, 2016 by Gary Hardaway
Reviewed by M. Earl Smith (8/4)

ASHBERY RIFFS => ASHBERY OFF-RIFF!

Pleased to share that X-Peri is not only featuring five poems from "The Ashbery Riff-Offs" but its cofounder Irene Koronas has created a visual accompaniment entitled "Ashbery Off-Riff"!  How fun! Here it is:

You can see my five poems HERE at X-Peri--gratitude to editor Daniel Harris for soliciting, then featuring

Witnessed in the Convex Mirror: Betrayal with Brand Names

Witnessed in the Convex Mirror: A Spy Story

Witnessed in the Convex Mirror: For Charlie Gard

Witnessed in the Convex Mirror: The Lost Context

Witnessed in the Convex Mirror: Art Foretells Even A Typhoon

UNLIKELY THREE POEMS

To date, I've written 113 poems for "The Ashbery Riff-Offs." And three more were just published by Unlikely Stories Mark V -- thanks to editor Jonathan Penton. Here are the poems' titles, which I list because on this blog I file:

Witnessed in the Convex Mirror: The Ascetic's Secret

Witnessed in the Convex Mirror: The Significance of Milk

Witnessed in the Convex Mirror: Beloved Achilles


Click HERE to see the poems, but here's an excerpt:

“something justifies the ecstasy we see deep within
the naked ascetic’s eyes, and for which he discarded
possessions he once thought would form history”
—from “The Ascetic’s Secret”

BLURBING LIKE THERE'S NO TOMORROW ...

What a beautiful cover -- lovely painting by Pascale Gouverneur for Felino Soriano's new poetry collection:

Click on image to enlarge and you'll see that Felino's is one of three books I recently blurbed:

On Parts of love by Dina S. Paulson-McEwen

Methinks “g (space) hyphen (space) d” would not mind these poems: it’s charming, after all, to be considered “like an art project, / something to jump through, / a song that continues to be played”—lines that also operate as an ars poetica for these enchantingly skittering poems. “The ritual” is the collection’s tour de force partly for indicating rationale: Pangea, and by implication the lostness of Pangea which begot that strain (and religions) within humanity of making connections. The result are poems uplifted by its loving motivation: “for love, include: / binoculars. oprah. / megabytes of / forgiveness, / a vase of memory / strapped to our heads, /like miners. one rsvp card. /it passes between our hands /until it becomes liquid.”

On A Searching for Full Body Syllables: fragmented olio by Felino A. Soriano

Even “bones [that] have begun the algebra / of breaking” cannot impede Felino A. Soriano from singing—exactly like jazz that, to quote J.J. Johnson, “won’t stay put and it never will.” In singing, Soriano continues a longtime practice of “relocating the lyric”—a way where “shatter improves stillness.” His poems come from “a voice / [that] spreads the ears, wandering before the / vanish.” If this collection is a form, it is “the form / of light”—a warm light, singing gently yet assuredly through a fracturing rain.

On ninth iota by Irene Koronas

Irene Koronas’ poems explain why humans want to craft something like civilization. It’s not just that the uncivil can be fearsome — it’s that they make many recoil. If you’ve already smashed those rose-colored glasses, the better to see, these poems won’t repel and may even amuse you. But those still lingering (and preferring to linger) in the dimness of the cave may look at these poems with suspicion—that wouldn’t be the poet’s fault. Koronas did her job in order to write these poems: she studied and analyzed human history, including naturally its myths. The result offers unique insights with erotic charge as a bonus.

*

Speaking of publications, here's 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

DADA BUDAPEST by John Olson (brilliant. There is no greater living prose poem writer. LinkedIntoPoetry (LPR) #268) 

DEAR ALMOST by Matthew Thorburn (I’ve long admired this poet’s works and this book is my favorite yet. LPR #269)

A SEARCHING FOR FULL BOD SYLLABLES: FRAGMENTED OLIO by Felino A. Soriano (see above blurb)

PARTS OF LOVE, poems by Dina S. Paulson-McEwen (see above blurb)

OXYGEN, poems by Julia Fiedorczuk, Translated by Bill Johnston (wonderful introduction to this Polish poet)

DAYS AND WORKS, poetry by Rachel Blau DuPlessis (marvelous)

RAYFISH, poems by Mary Hickman (fabulous. And it’s usually interesting when art criticism infuses poetry)

NINTH IOTA, poems by Irene Koronas (see above blurb)

SALAMANDER: A BESTIARY with poems by Leonard Schwartz and prints by Simon Carr (wonderful!)

GOD GOT A DOG, poems by Cynthia Rylant and illustrations by Marla Frazee (nifty and charming)

DEGRETS, poems by Anselm Berrigan (very permission-giving as regards poem-making)

*  MARAWI, poems by Albert E. Alejo and Eileen R. Tabios, Trans. by Aileen Cassinetto

* OXYGEN, poems by Julia Fiedorczuk, Trans. by Bill Johnston

* OPENING THE MOUTH OF THE DEAD, poems by Catherine Woodard

THE LAST LYRIC: SELECTED POEMS by Yu Xinqiao, Trans. by Yunte Huang

* ANYJAR, poems by Jaimie Gusman

* FORGET IT, poems by Anastacia Renee

CODIFY, poems by Irene Koronas

HOLY GHOST, poems by David Brazil

BOHR’S SPINOZA, poems by Noah Eli Gordon

CAPTAIN FLY’S BUCKET LIST, poems by Agnes Marton

* FREE FERRY, poems by Ann Cefola

* AIR TEA WITH DOLORES, poems by Djelloul Marbrook

* THE POLICE, poems by Daniel Poppick

* ADAM CANNOT BE ADAM, poems by Kelli Anne Noftle

*  CHINATOWN SONNETS by Dorothy Chan

* GAVE, poems by Cole Swensen

* FOLLOWING THE DOG DOWN, poems by John Liles

* THE ROOM IN WHICH I WORK, poems by Andrew Seguin

* PRECIS, poems by Jose Felipe Alverque

* CIVILIZATION MAKES ME LONELY, poems by Jennifer Nelson

* HUA SHI HUA [DRAWINGS AND POEMS FROM CHINA] by Jen Hyde

* CODE OF SIGNALS, poems by Kenneth Sherwood

* WALKING AS A WRINKLE, poems by George J Farrah

* FROM THE OTHER ROOM, poems by Anna M. Warrock

* THE VIG OF LOVE, poems by Bill Yarrow

*  THE EROTIC POSTULATE, poems by Matthew Hittinger

*  THE MASQUE OF MARILYN, poems by Matthew Hittinger

* VIXEN, poems by Cerene Sherrard

NEAR: A LUMINESCENCE, poems by Melissa Buzzeo

YOU THEN A DANG, poems by Hoa Nguyen

HOPE ALT DELETE, poems by Nikki Dudley

SMALL CEREMONIES, poems by Cynthia Snow

RIGGER DEATH & HOIST ANOTHER, poems by Laura McCullough

FUTURES TRADING, ANTHOLOGY FOUR, poetry, prose and art edited by Caleb Puckett

OTOLITHS Issue 46, literary/arts journal edited by Mark Young

THE OFI PRESS MAGAZINE 54, literary journal edited by Jack Little

IF A FILIPINO WRITER READS DON QUIJOTE: THREE LECTURES by Alfred Yuson, Vicente G. Groyon and F. Sionil Jose (Late to this book and the 400^th anniversary of Don Quijote – it’s a paradoxical project, given the *labor* required to find links between “the world’s greatest novel” and canonical Filipino writing. And I confess to being amused by said labor, that lapses (cough) to “humor” being the link. But it’s all benign. And kudos to Senor Miguel de Cervantes – it’s the rare writer with an “Institute” promoting their works 400 years after their works were writ.)

CONTEMORARY LITERARY HORIZON: AN INTERCULTURAL DICTIONARY edited by Daniel Dragomirescu

ORIZONT LITERAR CONTEMPORAN #58, literary journal edited by Daniel Dragomirescu

DISPATCHES FROM THE POETRY WARS, July 2017, literary journal coedited by Michael Boughn and Kent Johnson

THE SUPERNATURAL AND BEYOND, memoir by Felix Fojas

THE EMPEROR’S CHILDREN, novel by Claire Messud

THE SUMMER WITHOUT MEN, novel by Siri Hustvedt

RISK, novel by Colin Harrison

THE CHEMIST, novel by Stephenie Meyer

TRUE FAITH AND ALLEGIANCE, novel by Tom Clancy and Mark Greaney

RIGHT BEHIND YOU, novel by Lisa Gardner

THE STARS ARE FIRE, novel by Anita Shreve

THE ULTIMATUM, novel by Karen Robards

JUSTICE, novel by Karen Robards

TAKE ALL TO NEBRASKA, novel by Sophus Keith Winther

WINES

2010 Domaine De La Janasse Cotes Du Rhone

2008 Blankiet Estate “Prince of Hearts” rose

2010 Altamura Negromaro

2014 Conterno Barbera d’Alba

1990 Ch. Haut Marbuzet

2011 Dancing Hares

2008 Blankiet Paradise Hills cabernet

2013 Seavey “Caravina” cabernet

2011 Retro Napa Valley petite sirah

1997 Veritas Barossa Valley cabernet/merlot

2012 Seavey merlot NV

2004 William Fevre Fourchaume chablis

2010 Domaine Rabeneau Montee de Tonnerre Chablis

2009 Alvaro Palacio Finca Dofi

Beringer Red Moscato

2016 Regusci Rose NV

2013 Mondavi Fume Blanc Reserve To Kalon Vineyard

2014 Mondavi cabernet

2013 Mondavi Carneros

2014 Seavey chardonnay

2013 Seavey merlot

2008 Seavey Caravina Cabernet

2013 Seavey Caravina Cabernet

2012 Seavey Cabernet

1997 Veritas Winery Mourvedre Grenache Barossa Valley

2006 Trevor Jones

2005 Alejandro Fernandez Dehesa La Granja

1994 Ferrari Carano Eldorado Gold

2012 Cercius

1996 Ch Mouton Rothschild

1996 Dunn Cabernet NV

2003 Almaviva

2014 B Cellars Maldonado chardonnay

2015 B Cellars Blend 27

2014 B Cellars Ehrlich cabernet

2014 B Cellars Kenefick cabernet

2005 hayblur “The Invictus” Limited Release Barossa Valley shiraz