WHEN THE POETS' "WRISTS ARE MAGIC"

I was delighted to provide blurbs for two upcoming publications -- great poetry out there! These are unedited blurbs:

CORPOREAL by Jean Vengua

To “[r]emember how / to touch our bodies” is to embark on the inevitable: “there was / a plot; / [you] did not / escape.” As Jean Vengua notes in Corporeal, the journey contains peril: “Aswang repairs her wound / with bone and thread.” But, as ever, knowledge is its own good: “but / grow to love the scars.” These poems are scars from bodily interactions—with ourselves, with others, with environs, and even with language. What for? Perhaps “a new angel, thrashing / on the wings”? That Vengua articulates “angel” implies hope. From a body intimate with suffering, such hope presents potential for ecstasy—in these poems, the poet’s “wrists are magic” and the receptive reader can be led to grace if not bliss: “some kisses are / sweeter than wine.”

Woeman by T. De Los Reyes

By correcting normative spelling to be the more accurate “Woeman,” T. de los Reyes speaks Truth. The He in one poem reminds ,"You can’t spell meaning without the word man." Truthfully, one can’t spell “meaning" without the word “mean” and too often the adjective is not for significance so much as it is for anguish. These poems reveal pain as the condition precedent to too much, including holiness, beauty and awakening. Synchronistically, the poems' internal music makes, say, “desire” rhyme with “bonsai," a tree whose growth requires being controlled. It is no wonder that when you “Think Vesuvius,” you have these poems which reveal why “It takes a lot to love the world."

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

3 Poetry Manuscripts

CORPOREAL, poems by Jean Vengua (fabulous. See above blurb)

WOEMAN, poems by T. De Los Reyes (fabulous. See above blurb)

MODERN JAPANESE TANKA edited by Makoto Ueda (fabulous. LinkedIn Poetry Recommendation (LPR) #277. See more reaction at this earlier blog post)

REPORTING LIVE FROM YOU KNOW WHERE, poems by Sheila E. Murphy (fabulous. Winner of The Hay(na)ku Poetry Book Prize)

PHENOMENOLOGY OF THE FERAL by Julia Rose Lewis (outstanding and impressive. LPR #275)

BEAST MERIDIEN by Vanessa Angelica Villarreal (OUTSTANDING & SUCH LUSH BEAUTY. A most intelligent mourning. And a direct contradiction to that racist binary of "technical and intellectual"ly accomplished versus group-identified. LPR #276)

LESSONS ON EXPULSION, poems by Erika L. Sanchez (the poet was onnnnn!)

UPROUTE: THE LANGUAGE OF PLATES, poetry by Sacha Archer (immensely satisfying)

NOTES ON THE SIGNS OF POETRY: ADDENDUM AND PRINTS by Sacha Archer (wonderful!)

THE RESERVOIR, poems by Donna Stonecipher (superb)

CRAWLSPACE, poems by Nikki Wallschlaeger (excellent, with the choice of the sonnet form a brilliant decision)

FOR WANT OF WATER, poems by Sasha Pimentel (it’s only her 2^nd collection yet I’m tempted to call it a “breakthrough” when comparing it to her first. Part of its marvelous effect is the poet reaching far beyond the personal self)

LOVE POEMS FROM HELL by Zvi A. Sesling (funny. Lines like “I will send hot lava for you” or “At last you left / and gone you left / your teeth / which I will scatter / in the wind”)

WHEREAS, poems by Layli Long Soldier (powerful, moving, elegant and inspiring)

*  ORPHIC NOISE, poems by Patrick Pritchett

TAKE TWO: FILM STUDIES, poems by Susan Terris

*  WHITE DECIMAL, poems by Jean Daive, Trans. from the French by Norma Cole

GAP GARDENING: SELECTED POEMS by Rosmarie Waldrop

THE BOOK OF WHAT REMAINS, poems by Benjamin Alire Saenz

RISK : : NO BALANCE, poems by Laura Neuman

THE SOLUBLE HOUR, poems by Hillary Gravendyk

GHOST OPERA, poems by Mercedes Roffe, Trans. by Judith Filc

* GASOLINE HEART, poems by Shannon Barber

* ALL OF THE REAL TEARS, poems by erica lewis

*  ALL SOUL PARTS RETURNED, poems by Bruce Beasley

*  FARNESSITY, poems by Randee Silv

*  FROM THE FILES OF THE IMMANENT FOUNDATION, poems by Norman Finkelstein

OBSCENITY FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF POETRY, poems by kathryn l. pringle

SHADOWBOXING, poems by Joseph Rios

THE YEAR WE TURNED DRAGON, poems by Metta Sama

DATA PRIMER, poems by Marthe Reed

[LUKAO], poetry by Craig Santos Perez

A WIFE IS A HOPE CHEST, poems by Christine Brandel

YOU ENVELOP ME, poems by Laynie Browne

OF ANNUNCIATIONS, poems by Ewa Chrusciel

YOU DA ONE (2^nd Ed.), poems by Jennif(f)er Tamayo

NATALITY, poems by E.G. Asher

GODDESS OF DEMOCRACY, poems by Henry Wei Lung

*  ESSAY POEMS by Donald Wellman

SUB-SISTERS: SELECTED POEMS by Uljana Wolf, Trans. from the German by Sophie Seita

IN MAD LOVE AND WAR, poems by Joy Harjo

PRIMATES FROM AN ARCHIPELAGO, poems by Irene Suico Soriano

PRE-, poems by Barbara Tomash

DETACHED PALACE GARDEN, poems by Harold Bowes

BRIDGE OF THE WORLD, poetry by Roberto Harrison

COMMODORE, poems by Jacqueline Waters

IF GOD WERE GENTLE, poems by D.R. James

LONG DIVISION, poems by M. Nicole R. Wildhood

STORM OF HOPE, poems by Leila Tualla

GOSPEL OF REGICIDE, poems by Eunsong Kim

SALVAGE, poems by Cynthia Dewi Oka

MOUTHS, poems by Claire Marie Stancek

DETOUR, poems by Sacha Archer

A WOMAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY, poems by Eagan Boland

THREADS OF EXECUTION, poems by Orchid Tierney (in manuscript)

BRASILIA, poems by Monica Manolachi and Neil Leadbeater (in manuscript)

*  HUMORS, poems by Joel Chace

*  ANNE WITH AN E & ME, poems by Wesley St. Jo

BRAIN : STORM, poems by Michelle Greenblatt

THESE DAYS OF CANDY, poems by Manuel Paul Lopez

BARDS FROM THE FAR EAST: ANTHOLOGY OF HAIKU & KINDRED VERSES, organized by Carolyn Gutierrez-Abanggan et al

*  EVIDENCE OF FETUS DIVERSITY, poetry + 1 anthology edited by Eileen R. Tabios

GENERALLY, SIR, A DISQUIETING SITUATION, a visual poetry collaboration between Bill Berkson and Michael Goldberg

EROTOPLASTY 1, literary journal edited by Colin Marshall

THE POETRY PROJECT Newsletter, Feb./March 2018 edited by Marwa Helal

WE ARE NOT ALONE: STORIES OF MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS curated by Ann W. Shannon and Skye Noir

* THE OBU MANIFESTOS

WAY OUT THERE: LYRICAL ESSAYS by Michael Daley

WILLIAM T. WILLIAMS, an art monograph for William T. Williams

THE DIARY OF A BOOKSELLER, memoir by Shaun Bythell

THE PRIVATE PAPERS OF A BANKRUPT BOOKSELLER, faux memoir by Will Y. Darling

THE YELLOW-LIGHTED BOOKSHOP, memoir by Lewis Buzbee

THE LITTLE BOOKSTORE OF BIG STONE GAP, memoir by Wendy Welch

EIGHT MONTHS IN PROVENCE: A JUNIOR YEAR ABROAD 30 YEARS LATER, memoir by Diane Covington-Carter

LENAPE, history by Cecile Culp

RED SWAN, novel by P.T. Deutermann

WINES

2009 Chianti Rufina Fattoria Selvapiana Vignetto Bucerchiale

2009 Flor De PIngus Ribera Del Duero

1/2 bottle of Krug Grand Cuvee

2005 Hundred Acre Kayli Morgan

1/2 bottle of 1995 Dow’s Quinta Do Bomfim

2007 Ch. De Fieuzal sauvignon blanc

2006 Tattinger champagne

2012 Dogliani

2003 Hare’s Chase shiraz Barossa Valley

2007 Vina Eguia Rioja Reserva

2013 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet

2001 Livio Sassetti Brunello di Montalcino Reserva

1/2 bottle of 1994 Warres

2014 Calera pinot noir Central Coast

1995 Vega Sicilia

2014 Somnium NV cabernet

2002 Hutton Vale

2009 Dal Forno Romano Valpolicella

Taylor 10-Year Tawny

2013 Seavey chardonnay

2013 Seavey merlot

2013 Seavey cabernet

2014 Seavey cabernet

2015 Frank Family pinot noir

2010 Monsanto Chianti Classico

[2014] Behrens and Drinkward cabernet

[2015-16] Behrens and Drinkward sauvignon blanc

GALATEA RESURRECTS IN FEBRUARY!

I'm delighted to release the February edition of Galatea Resurrects! You can click HERE but I'll also paste the Contents below for convenience:

FEBRUARY
Featured Poet: Sheila E. Murphy
(2/20)

The Palace of Flowers by Gerry Grubbs
Reviewed by Joseph P. Tomain (2/19)

The Small Door of Your Death by Sheryl St. Germain
Reviewed by Neil Leadbeater (2/18)

Featured Essay: "Karl Kempton and 'The Enigma of the Other': The Originary Structures of Truth and Discovery of Visual Writing"
By Tom Hibbard (2/17)

Stubborn by Sheri Reda
Reviewed by M. Earl Smith (2/16)

WHEREAS by Layli Long Soldier
Engaged by Eileen Tabios (2/15)

some more strange meteorites by Mark Young
Reviewed by Neil Leadbeater (2/14)

Guitar Tech by Mark Sonnenfeld
Reviewed by Jim Leftwich (2/14)

ANNE WITH AN E & ME by Wesley St. Jo
Engaged by Eileen Tabios (2/13)

Girl Gang by Juliet Cook
Reviewed by M. Earl Smith (2/12)

ORPHIC CANTOS by Ivan Argüelles
Engaged by John M. Bennett (2/11)

PHENOMENOLOGY OF THE FERAL by Julia Rose Lewis
Engaged by Eileen Tabios (2/10)

Phaneagrams by Jake Berry
Engaged by Jim Leftwich (2/9)

The Critic Writes Poems: Paul Pines
(2/8)

Featured Essay: "The Nearness of Asemic Writing" 
By Jim Leftwich (2/8)

MARAWI by Albert E. Alejo and Eileen R. Tabios with translations by Aileen Cassinetto
Reviewed by Neil Leadbeater (2/7)

farnessity, wordslabs by Randee Silv
Reviewed by Jim Leftwich (2/6)

Interview: William Burroughs
Engaged by jim mccrary (2/5)

Tres tressstrisss trieesss tril trilssss: Transmutations of Cesar Vallejo by Jim Leftwich
Engaged by John M. Bennett (2/4)

From Here by Zoe Skoulding, with illustrations by Simonetta Moro
Reviewed by M. Earl Smith (2/3)

Publications by Scott MacLeod, Michael Palmer, Thomas Lowe Taylor, Ann Lauterbach, Daniel Davidson and Laura Moriarty
Engaged by Scott MacLeod (2/2)

The Critic Writes Poems: Jim McCrary
(2/1)

*

I wasn't expecting it, but I certainly also am blessed to have one of my co-authored projects, MARAWI, receive a review.  Thanks to Neil Leadbeater!

EROTOPLASTY 1

I'm always glad to help inaugurate new poetry publications, and so am delighted that five of the poems in my "The Ashbery Riff-Offs" series are in the brand new EROTOPLASTY! Thanks to editor Colin Lee Marshall for asking!  You can see the issue HERE -- and how can you possibly resist that cover!

My poems are in fantabulous company of poems and art by R.T.A. Parker, Astra Papachristodoulou, Rosy Carrick, Hiromi Suzuki, Tim Atkins, Joseph Persad, Yuna Lee Marshall, Florence Uniacke, Robert Kiely, Cathy Weedon, Jonty Tiplady, Colin Lee Marshall, John Bloomberg-Rissman, Alice Tarbuck, Antony John, Eileen R. Tabios, Julia Rose Lewis, Maria Sledmere, Jèssica Pujol Duran, John DeWitt, Victor Hugo/Peter Manson, and Mandel Cabrera.

FUTURES TRADING!

Delighted to be part of Futures Trading with four poems from my "The Ashbery Riff-Offs"  series. Thanks to editor Caleb Puckett! And happy with the wonderful company of Mark Young, Mercedes Lawry, Eileen Tabios, Stephen Middleton, Nigel Ford, A. J. Huffman, Holly Day, William Ogden Haynes, Gareth Culshaw, Michael T. Smith, Jeff Bagato, Walter Ruhlmann, Steve Timm, Darren Demaree, John Gr.ey, Christopher Barnes, Marc Bradley, Simon Perchik, Lawrence Upton, and Annie Blake.  You can see issue HERE.

EKPHRASTIC HAY(NA)KU

("RESIST" by Alice Brody. Quilt, 35 x 47", 2018)

Iris Stoler's ekphrastic response:

RESIST

(after “RESIST” quilt by Alice Brody)

Chaos

in the

uni verse yes

but

in com

plete they can

attempt

to sever

her closed fist

one

finger at

at time but

look

here! Against

a heaven filled

with

ages’ detritus

she will remain

in

the foreground

and will raise

hell

because she

can yes she

can

I love Iris' poem for straddling the conflict that can occur between syllables and words in poetic short forms. She does so by breaking up a word into more than one word based on syllable, which is to say, based on sound, and I think it's effective here.


About the Poet:
Iris Lee’s book of poems, URBAN BIRD LIFE, was published in 2010 by NYQ Books. Her work has also appeared in such venues as Haibun Today, OccuPoetry and The New York Times. A lifelong Brooklynite, she leads a writing workshop for theater professionals at The Actors Fund in New York City.


About the Artist:
Alice H. Brody is a fiber artist living in New York City.  She has exhibited at the Whistler House Museum of Art in Lowell, MA; The Empire Quilt Guild, NYC;  Quilting by the Lake, Syracuse, NY and Berkeley, CA.  She also recently developed, in partnership with a physician, an innovative hospital gown, in use in a major NYC area hospital.


Alice's quilt below is a companion piece to the quilt that inspired Iris, so we're pleased to present it as well:

[click on images to enlarge]